Could Trump lose his Wall Street ‘favourite’ as legal woes threaten business empire?

Following the judgement in his civil fraud trial awarding New York state almost half a billion dollars, former president Donald Trump may need to get rid of one of his New York real estate jewels to pay it off.

New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose office brought the suit, told ABC News after the judgement last month that she’s “prepared to make sure the judgment is paid”.

“I look at 40 Wall Street each and every day,” she added.

In 2008, Mr Trump was asked by the Financial Times what was his “most prudent investment”.

“Buying 40 Wall Street – a 1.3m sq ft landmark, and the tallest building in lower Manhattan, for $1m. It's now worth $600m. It's one of my favourite deals and one of my favourite buildings,” he told the paper at the time. “I had been watching this building for decades before I made my move in 1995 when the market wasn't so good. Everyone advised me to turn it into a residential building, but I wanted to keep it as a business address, and it has proven to be a wonderful location for some of the top businesses of the world.”

The paper noted on Tuesday that the deal restored much of Mr Trump’s reputation after the failure of his casinos.

People stand outside of 40 Wall Street, also known as ‘the Trump Building’, on 12 February 2024 in New York City

On Friday, Mr Trump posted a surety bond after the writer E Jean Carroll was awarded $83.3m in damages. As Mr Trump faces the squeeze to pay the civil fraud damages as well, it remains unclear how he will come up with the cash and what assets he may liquidate to do so.

Forty Wall Street, also known as the Trump Building, was the site of protests from the start of Mr Trump’s presidency on 20 January 2017.

Activists gather in front of the Trump