Monty Bennett, Trump donor and largest recipient of PPP funds, will return money

• The largest recipient of COVID-19 bailout loans, Trump campaign donor Monty Bennett, announced Saturday he would return all money received through the Paycheck Protection Program.
• Business Insider recently reported that Bennett won the money after contributing significantly to Trump's re-election, and spent $50,000 to hire two of Trump's fundraisers to lobby the administration for bailout money.
• This is a developing story.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The hotel conglomerate run by a major campaign donor to President Donald Trump, Monty Bennett, announced Saturday it would return all the money it received through the Paycheck Protection Program.

"The Ashford Group of Companies announced today that all of its companies, including Ashford Inc. (NYSE American: AINC), Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE: AHT) ("Ashford Trust"), and Braemar Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: BHR) ("Braemar"), will return all funds provided by the Small Business Administration's ("SBA") Paycheck Protection Program ("PPP") due to the agency's recently changed rules and inconsistent federal guidance that put the companies at compliance risk," Bennett's companies said in a statement emailed to investors.

Bennett's decision followed two hours after Democratic nominee Joe Biden blasted Bennett, tweeting, "Monty Bennett should return the tens of millions of dollars he received, and we should give it to the small businesses that need it."

Bennett runs a conglomerate of 128 hotels, which received, collectively, more than $58 million through the PPP. Business Insider broke the news on April 23 that he won the money after contributing significantly to Trump's re-election and spent $50,000 to hire two of the president's fundraisers to lobby the administration for bailout money.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Read the original article on Business Insider