MHCCA boosts truck sales returns by 15% despite asset bubble

HOUSTON — Equipment financier Mitsubishi HC Capital America’s heightened focus on asset management is driving higher returns on truck sales despite the freight downturn.  

The lender bolstered its asset management team in response to the asset bubble created by the pandemic-era trucking boom, a decision that “has tremendously aided our efforts in distributing repossessed assets as they come back,” Kirk Mann, executive vice president and head of transportation and vendor solutions, said during a fireside chat today at Equipment Finance Connect 2026. 

In fact, Mitsubishi HC Capital America’s buildout of a “dedicated asset management function” has boosted recoveries on transportation assets by up to 15%, mitigating losses and supporting its ability to stay in the market, Mann said.  This also improves the ability to calculate market-centric residuals and lower total operating costs for customers, he said.

Highlighting the asset bubble, a 4-year-old Freightliner Cascadia with less than 500,000 miles carried a wholesale value of $45,000 in 2022, but it was selling at retail for roughly $120,000, he said. 

After inflated prices led to significant losses at the beginning of the freight recession, price has become a larger part of the lender’s underwriting decisions as asset managers work diligently to identify a truck’s true value, Mann said. 

This approach enhances risk management in the transportation finance segment, aiding dealer sales when many lenders are pulling back from the sector.  

“We want to be a sustainable partner to our dealers and customers, but we do have to be careful,” he said.  

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