'Who’s going to do that?' Experts explain 'headache' Trump faces securing $540M bond
New York purveyors of courtroom loans aren’t betting on former President Donald Trump’s odds of securing a bond in his $355 million civil court judgment, according to a new report.
The fraud liability ruling from Justice Arthur Engoron mandates Trump either hand over the lump sum — plus $98 million in interest — or post an appeal bond worth about $540 million, according to an NBC News estimate.
The latter option comes with many challenges, experts told the news outlet.
ALSO READ: How Speaker Mike Johnson’s dream of bipartisan decency died in his hands
The first problem the mega-developer faces is that it’s “not very attractive to take real estate as collateral,” surety bond agency Pedersen & Sons owner Neil Pedersen told NBC.
Bonds agents might also worry about the nature of Trump’s ruling — he was found liable for fraudulent business practices, lawyer David Slarskey noted to NBC.
“Who ever is going to bond [Trump] is committing that they’re going to make good on that judgment,” the business attorney reportedly said. “Who’s going to do that?”
Trump might have the cash, having boasted last year he had $400 million on hand, but his attorney Alina Habba has said she expects to post a bond within a 30-day window set by the court.
Some have posited Trump could sell off real estate, but according to Pedersen, converting those assets to cash is its own “headache.”
The final complication is also, coincidentally the upcoming event Trump likely hopes will protect him from criminal prosecution in his federal election interference and classified documents cases, according to the report.
Should Trump, the Republican frontrunner in the upcoming presidential election, regain the White House in 2025 he could effectively kill the Justice department cases filed against him.
But Trump's hoped-for heightened status might make bond companies wary of entering into an "unprecedented" situation, Pedersen told NBC News.
Explained Pedersen, “No one’s ever had to enforce an indemnity agreement against what could very well be the next U.S. president."