Donald Trump announced Monday that he has selected investment banker and Republican major donor Warren Stephens as ambassador to the United Kingdom.

“Warren always dreamed of serving the United States full-time,” Trump wrote in a social media post. “I am delighted that he will now have the opportunity as a top diplomat to represent the United States to one of America’s most valued and beloved allies.”

According to the company’s website, Stephens is chairman, president and CEO of Stephens Inc, a private financial services company headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas.

The businessman has regularly donated to conservative causes, although not always in support of Trump. Stephens initially poured money into efforts to oppose Trump’s candidacy in 2016, but later supported Trump’s presidential run in 2020. In 2023, Stephens donated to support Asa Hutchinson’s presidential candidacy. In 2024, he donated at least $2 million to Make America Great Again Inc, a pro-Trump super pac, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

In his announcement, Trump called Stephens’ company a “wonderful financial services company” and praised Stephens for “selflessly giving back to his community as a philanthropist.”

A 2017 Guardian report revealed that Stephens held a 40% stake in a payday loan company, Integrity Advance, which was taken into action by the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) in 2015 for alleged predatory lending practices. The revelation came as part of the Paradise Papers reporting project, which investigated the use of tax havens by multinational companies to safeguard their money.

According to the 2015 CFPB report, Integrity Advance allegedly misled borrowers by concealing the total cost of loans and requiring borrowers to repay loans through pre-authorized electronic transfers.