FTX Considered Buying an Island to Conduct Human Genetic Experimentation

"Probably there are other things it’s useful to do with a sovereign country, too."

Misguided and Dystopian

We knew there was a lot of wild stuff going on behind the scenes as the cryptocurrency exchange FTX imploded in spectacular fashion last year.

But the more we hear, the more unhinged it gets. A new lawsuit filed against disgraced FTX CEO Bankman-Fried reveals "frequently misguided and sometimes dystopian" schemes FTX's nonprofit arm called the FTX Foundation pursued.

One memo suggested that Bankman-Fried and his brother Gabriel even discussed buying a tiny island nation called Nauru, in Micronesia, to build a bunker there. Its goal? To be used in case the world's population were ever cut by "50 to 99.99 percent," when it help repopulate the Earth. It would also serve as a "lab" to develop "sensible regulation around human genetic enhancement."

"Probably there are other things it’s useful to do with a sovereign country, too," the memo reads.

Effective Altruist Bunker

Bankman-Fried's various hairbrained charitable concepts were closely tied to "effective altruism," a philosophical movement that seeks to maximize profit in order to maximize the benefit to others in society by using reason and evidence.

In simple terms, the former crypto baron was seeking to make as much money as possible and pass on this wealth to others, including political and social clauses.

The reality, however, was that Bankman-Fried has been accused of stuffing their pockets with millions of dollars in personal payouts, and his charitable efforts sound like a bit of a joke.

According to the latest lawsuit filed against the CEO, the FTX Foundation "served little purpose other than to enhance the public stature of Defendants."

The foundation issued grants for a variety of projects, including $300,000 for somebody to write a book about ways to figure out "humans' utility functions."

It also handed out a whopping $400,000 for somebody to animate YouTube videos to explain the concept of effective altruism, including videos on "grabby aliens."

Meanwhile, Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to fraud and is awaiting his trial later this year.

That's probably a good thing. Otherwise, he and his former colleagues may have actually had a chance to build a dystopian bunker for human experimentation.

More on FTX: FTX Made a Very Smart Investment That May Be Able to Pay Back Its Customers