An appeals court in the United States has agreed to pause the collection of Donald Trump’s USD 454m civil fraud judgement, delivering a victory to the former US president and preventing authorities in New York from beginning to seize his assets, writes AL Jazeera.

A New York state appellate court granted Trump’s request to push back the deadline for payment, as well as reduce the bond he would be required to pay while he appeals. Trump - who had been facing the immediate seizure of some of his real estate assets - now has 10 days to post a smaller USD 175m bond, rather than pay the full amount.

His legal team had previously argued that a USD 454m bond was too steep and that the former president would not be able to raise the funds before Monday’s deadline. New York Attorney General Letitia James had signalled she was prepared to seize Trump’s assets if he missed the cut-off date.

The revised bond amount and deadline come after Trump was found liable last month for overstating his net worth to dupe investors and lenders. After the court’s ruling, in a post on his Truth Social platform, the ex-president said his legal team “will abide by the decision … and post either a bond, equivalent securities, or cash”.

James’s office said Trump is “still facing accountability for his staggering fraud”.