Bankman-Fried deliberate to purchase Nauru and construct apocalypse bunker – lawsuit

The disgraced cryptocurrency mogul Sam Bankman-Fried, who based the FTX alternate, had deliberate to buy the small Pacific island nation of Nauru in case the world got here to an finish, in accordance with a brand new lawsuit.

The lawsuit, filed on Thursday by FTX towards its 31-year-old founder and three different former executives, and searching for $1bn, included a memo created by Bankman-Fried’s youthful brother Gabriel and an FTX Basis govt. The memo detailed plans to purchase Nauru.

The plan was to “buy the sovereign nation of Nauru as a way to assemble a ‘bunker/shelter’ that might be used for ‘some occasion the place 50-99.99% of individuals die [to] be sure that most EAs survive’” the memo stated, referring to “efficient altruism”, a philosophical and social motion championed by Bankman-Fried that tries to maximise the affect of charitable giving.

The memo additionally famous plans to develop “wise regulation round human genetic enhancement, and construct a lab there”. It additionally stated “most likely there are different issues it’s helpful to do with a sovereign nation, too”.

Nauru is a sovereign state in Micronesia, and has an space of 21 sq km and a inhabitants of roughly 12,500 folks, making it the third-smallest nation on this planet. Within the Nineties, Nauru turned a money-laundering haven to the likes of the Russian mafia and al-Qaida by promoting varied banking licenses and diplomatic passports.

In 1998, an estimated $70bn in Russian mafia cash was wired by way of Nauru’s banks. 4 years later, the US treasury designated the nation as a money-laundering state.

Thursday’s lawsuit comes as Bankman-Fried’s successor, John Ray, seeks to recoup damages brought on by alleged transgressions by Bankman-Fried and different former executives.

“This motion seeks to recuperate damages brought on by defendants’ breaches of their fiduciary duties and to keep away from and recuperate illegal transfers of a whole lot of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} that defendants misappropriated from the estates of … debtors and debtors-in-possession,” the lawsuit stated.

In December, Bankman-Fried was arrested within the Bahamas over allegations he had stolen buyer funds. He was later extradited to the US and pleaded not responsible to prices that he cheated traders and stole billions of {dollars}.

Thursday’s lawsuit referred to as the entire ordeal “one of many largest monetary frauds in historical past”, including that the alleged misconduct of Bankman-Fried and different executives “induced the FTX Group to break down, to the nice detriment of shoppers, collectors and shareholders”.

On Thursday, prosecutors additionally requested US district choose Lewis Kaplan to restrict Bankman-Fried’s capacity to debate case particulars outdoors the courtroom, alleging that Bankman-Fried tried to publicly discredit 28-year-old Caroline Ellison, a authorities witness who was as soon as his girlfriend and former govt of Alameda Analysis, his crypto-investment firm.

In line with a courtroom submitting, Bankman-Fried tried to sway the jury by sharing Ellison’s personal writings with a New York Occasions reporter. On Thursday, the New York Occasions revealed an article that featured ideas Ellison wrote on personal Google paperwork, together with her doubts about her capacity to run Alameda Analysis and her tumultuous relationship with Bankman-Fried.

Prosecutors wrote: “The defendant’s goal in sharing these supplies is apparent. Ellison has pleaded responsible to a cooperation settlement and is anticipated to testify at trial that she agreed with the defendant to defraud FTX’s prospects and traders, and Alameda’s lenders.

“By selectively sharing sure personal paperwork with the New York Occasions, the defendant is making an attempt to discredit a witness, forged Ellison in a poor gentle, and advance his protection by way of the press and outdoors the constraints of the courtroom and guidelines of proof: that Ellison was a jilted lover who perpetrated these crimes alone.”