The Winklevoss twins are disrupting the sell side, or trying. After winning a settlement believed to be worth at least $65 million from Facebook, the twins pumped $1 million into SumZero, a social network for the buy side. "We always saw ourselves in careers as entrepreneurs or angels," Cameron Winklevoss told The Wall Street Journal. "My favorite toy as a kid was Legos. I loved building things, and that's what we're doing with SumZero."

Not wanting to be left out of anti-money laundering investigations, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is probing JPMorgan.

Best Buy founder Richard Schulze met with lenders last week as he seeks financing for his bid to take back his old company. Mr. Schulze's plan is not fully baked, a source told The New York Post; in addition to bankers, Mr. Schulze is seeking to partner with private equity firms. 

The Times headed north to profile the most interesting man in the Adirondacks: Sandy Lewis, the son of Bear Stearns managing partner Cy, a man who pleaded guilty to a case of insider trading he committed to prove a point, who once tried to counsel Bill Clinton on the former president's extramarital affairs, and who in retirement, is spending a lot of time emailing journalists.

Wall Street expects weak third-quarter profits across corporate America, says The Times.

Elaine Tettemer Marshall, America's fourth-richest woman, controls almost 15 percent of Koch Industries, according to Bloomberg. Her fortune has been in a "near-constant state of turmoil" since her father-in-law, J. Howard Marshall II, married Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith in 1994.

Chinese billionaires lost one-third of their wealth last year, according to CNBC.

Warren Buffett is done with radiation treatment to combat prostate cancer, the 82-year-old Berkshire Hathaway chairman said on Friday.

TD Ameritrade founder Joe Ricketts, who owns the Chicago Cubs and online news service DNAInfo, is going ahead with plans to spend $10 million on ads to support Mitt Romney—turning Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel into a fan of the White Sox.

General Motors is pushing the government to sell the stake in the automaker acquired in a 2009 bailout, according to The Journal, in hopes of escaping the stigma of state-ownership, and lifting restrictions on executive pay. The government is balking, at least until share prices rise.

Russia's favorite pyramid schemer—the "evil genius" Sergei Mavrodi—is at it again.

How to define 'subprime?' The answer may determine the fate of the government's case against three Freddie Mac executives alleged to have misled mortgage investors.

Citi became the first U.S. lender to issue it's own credit card in China, Bloomberg reports.

George Soros disclosed a 7.85 percent stake in Manchester United, the British soccer club that began trading on New York Stock Exchange on Aug. 10.

Felix Salmon says Man U's fluctuating share price is another good argument to keep investors away from initial public offerings.

The regulator tasked with overseeing audits of brokerage firms such as Peregrine Financial Group, the Iowa-based futures broker that shuttered last month after it's founder attempted suicide, has disturbing news, Floyd Norris reports in The Times. Every audit reviewed by Public Company Accounting Oversight Board inspectors showed a failure to take proper efforts to verify financial statements or ensure that the audited firms had sufficient capital on hand.

Since the London Whale capsized Jamie Dimon's reputation, Wall Street has struggled to put forth a replacement statesmen, according to Bloomberg.

Despite new law that may allow IPO bankers to publish research on offerings they underwrite as soon as, or even before, shares begin trading, banks have informally agreed to a quiet period of 25 days, The Wall Street Journal reports.

In an about face, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway terminated $8.25 billion in credit default swaps on municipal debt. If Mr. Buffett has doubts about munis, should you too?

Best Buy reported second-quarter profit fell 90 percent on restructuring charges and week sales. Good news for Richard Schulze?

Spain's short-term borrowing costs fell as markets bet that the European Central Bank would intervene in sovereign debt markets.

Deutsche Bank is one of four European lenders being investigated by U.S. authorities for possible violations involving oil-trading and Iran, a source told Bloomberg.

Best Buy named Hubert Joly, the French-born chief executive of the Carlson hospitality chain, as the new CEO of the electronics chain. The electronics retailer is still jousting with founder Richard Schulze over the terms of a deal to allow Mr. Schulze to review company documents as he puts together a buy-out bid.

Spanish finance minister Luis de Guindos is seeking help from the European Central Bank to rein in Spain's sovereign borrowing costs.

The European troika is pressuring Ireland to close a legal loophole impeding foreclosures on loans originated prior to 2009.

JPMorgan tapped former Exxon CEO Lee Raymond to lead an inquiry into the billions of dollars in losses accrued by the bank's chief investment office and the trader known as the London Whale. The inquiry will double-check an earlier internal investigation.

An elder member of the Rothschild banking dynasty has taken a $200 million against the euro.

A Greek hedge fund manager tells Joe Weisenthal to brace for bad news out of Greece as summer holidays end.

Clifford J. White III, director of the Justice Department's U.S. Trustee Program, has presided over more active policing of Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings.

Some early investors in Groupon, including Marc Andreessen, are cashing in and walking away from the company.

YouGov looked at the reputational hits suffered by the two companies, and concluded that...lying on your resume isn't as bad as shtupping an employee nearly half your age. Here's the YouGov BrandIndex:

And a grab from the YouGov report:

Yahoo’s reputation bounced back quickly after the April layoffs and only experienced mild bumpiness in the 11 days then-CEO Thompson was under the gun for his college credentials.

On the other hand, when Best Buy CEO Brian Dunn resigned under the cloud of an “inappropriate relationship” with a female employee—at about the same time as the Yahoo layoffs—the chain’s reputation sunk considerably below Yahoo. Best Buy slowly recovered to Yahoo levels from mid-April to mid-May, only to fall back hard again when founder Richard Schulze stepped down for not handling the Dunn affair to the board’s liking.

Well, none of that feels very surprising, but it's interesting today amid news that Mr. Schulze will put his 20 percent holdings in Best Buy in play. After all, Mr. Thompson's ouster helped settle Mr. Loeb's longstanding beef with Yahoo's board. We can't help but wonder, then, what YouGov's research would look like one month after Mr. Schulze relinquished all or some of his stake.

Some things are free! (Courtesy Dumbo Books of Brooklyn)

Ever think "Where's my wallet?" when walking around the Atlantic Terminal or Atlantic Center malls?

It's probably missing. The shopping centers have become the "singular crime epicenter in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill's 88th Precinct," The New York Times reports.

At least 26 reported crimes have happened in the center since the beginning of the year, The Times noted:

• 14 purses and wallets stolen

• Four reported — and countless unreported — incidents of shoplifting

• Two victims losing $1,200 in an iPad scam

• Two fights

• Three muggings or attempted muggings

• One theft of a bicycle

The brazen thieves are even going after the center's employees. Rebecca Godfrey, a worker in the Altantic Terminal,  has been a two-time victim: three months ago someone snatched a purse containing valuables and $1,250 and last month someone grabbed her iPhone. "I saw it two seconds too late. They do it right in front of your face," she told The Times.

The commanding officer of the precinct said that he has to constantly reminds shoppers: "Close your pocketbook, keep it close to your person, don't leave the purse in the shopping cart."

Apparently, the outlaw culture has developed to such heightened levels that some thieves are even dressing as Best Buy employees selling discounted iPads. Once the cash is handed over, the pseudo-employee ditches and the customer is left with an empty box.

Although, c'mon guys, consumers typically pay for things at a cash register.

mewing@observer.com

More aisles than Walmart, Target, and Best Buy combined! (Courtesy of Electron Plumber)

Big isn't always better!

Best Buy did a monstrous belly flop in the pool of big retailers last Thursday, reporting a $2.6 billion quarter loss and sending tidal waves to similar retailers. Best Buy, along with many of its retailing rivals, is shifting their focus to opening smaller locations. We are facing down the end of the big box story, according to Bloomberg.

Target, Walmart, all are opening smaller stores, a recognition of changing demographics, a shift online and competition from one another as markets become saturated.

Lady Walmart, who is perhaps queen of the belly flop in local communities, has plans to build about 100 petite stores, Neighborhood Market, as well as 150 supercenters, about thirty more than they added in 2011, despite eight consecutive quarters of profit loss. The Neighborhood Markets have been seen as a strategy to break into dense markets like New York, going up against the Duane Reades of the world.

Still, the news of shrinking interest and sales can't help but cause wonderment at the fact that Walmart is somehow America's favorite retailer.

mewing@observer.com

Meanwhile, Best Buy will take the old Circuit City space in the same building.

(Updated) R. Webber Hudson, executive vice president of Related Urban Development, said that Best Buy would open this fall, and Nordstrom Rack, in Virgin's old space, the first quarter of 2010. 

Competition for the space was pretty stiff.

"It's a the most improtant marketplace in the United States," Mr. Hudson said. "And we're in one of the key hubs."

Winick Realty Group represented Related in its negotiations with Ripco Real Estate, which represented Best Buy, and with Madison Retail Group, which represented Nordstrom Rack.

Read the whole release below!

NORDSTROM RACK TO OPEN FIRST MANHATTAN STORE AT ONE UNION SQUARE SOUTH SEATTLE (July 21, 2009)—Seattle-based Nordstrom, Inc. (NYSE: JWN), a leading fashion specialty retailer, announced it will open a 32,136 square-foot Nordstrom Rack, a unit of the company's off-price retail division, in Manhattan at One Union Square South on 14th Street between Broadway and Fourth Avenue on the south side of Union Square Park.

Scheduled to open in spring 2010, this will be the retailer’s first Nordstrom Rack in Manhattan.

“We’re pleased to announce the first Manhattan Nordstrom Rack,” said Scott Meden, president of Nordstrom Rack.

“This is a rare opportunity that opened at the right time for us. Union Square is a thriving retail area and is an ideal location for the city’s first Rack. When we open for business next spring, customers can expect to find savings on merchandise from many of the same brands carried at Nordstrom stores.”

Nordstrom Rack carries merchandise from Nordstrom stores and Nordstrom.com at 50-60% off original Nordstrom prices. Nordstrom Rack also offers a wide selection of apparel, accessories and shoes from many of the lines carried in Nordstrom stores and purchased specially for Nordstrom Rack, with most at savings of 30-70% off. In the tri-state area, the company currently operates eight Nordstrom stores and three Nordstrom Racks. “Nordstrom is one of the nation’s leading fashion retailers and we are delighted that they have chosen Union Square, one of New York City’s most desirable commercial destinations for their first Manhattan Nordstrom Rack store.

Related has played a key role in the revitalization of Union Square for over a decade and we are proud to continue to contribute to the transformation of the area,” said Jeff T. Blau, president of Related Companies.

One Union Square South consists of a 22-story luxury residential rental tower located above a five-story retail block that includes Regal Cinemas and several other prime retail spaces. The building’s façade features a public artwall containing the mixed-media Metronome by Andrew Ginzel and Kristin Jones that was at the time the largest private commission of public art in New York City’s history. Nordstrom Rack at One Union Square South will have 30 feet of street level storefront and will occupy the lower level of the former Virgin Megastore. Also joining Nordstrom at One Union Square South is Best Buy, which is expected to open in the former Circuit City space during the fourth quarter of 2009.

One of the most vibrant districts in New York City, Union Square is a dynamic center of food and fashion, culture and cutting edge businesses. The approximately 12,000 businesses located within a half-mile radius of Union Square employs about 140,000 people. Union Square is home to the City's oldest Greenmarket, a beautiful historic park, and hundreds of restaurants and shops. Related was formed over 37 years ago and is today considered the most prominent privately owned real estate firm in the United States with divisions in development, acquisitions, property management, marketing and sales.

Headquartered in New York City, Related has offices and major developments in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Francisco and South Florida and boasts a team of more than 2,000 professionals. Related has real estate assets worth over $15 billion, including New York City’s newest landmark Time Warner Center. For more information about Related Companies please visit www.related.com.

Related has long been committed to the Union Square area, having completed historical redevelopments (the Century Building on 17th Street and the W Union Square Hotel on Park Avenue South), as well as newly-constructed buildings (The Sierra on West 15th Street and One Union Square South at the base of Union Square). Related President Jeff Blau also serves on the board of directors of the Union Square Partnership.

Nordstrom, Inc. is one of the nation's leading fashion specialty retailers, with 175 stores located in 28 states. Founded in 1901 as a shoe store in Seattle, today Nordstrom operates 111 full-line stores, 61 Nordstrom Racks, two Jeffrey boutiques and one clearance store. Nordstrom also serves customers through its online presence at www.nordstrom.com and through its catalogs. Nordstrom, Inc. is publicly traded on the NYSE under the symbol JWN. ###

Indeed! Chic leather handbags with removable laptop sleeves are the first items on display when you stroll down the blue-carpeted entranceway to the city's freshest Best Buy, which held its blue-and-gold-balloon-strewn grand opening on Friday at Fifteen Central Park West.

A day earlier, the retailer even held a fashion show, with an appearance by design diva Tim Gunn of Project Runway fame.

Yes, the home of the Geek Squad has gone slightly more upscale at its new Columbus Circle location. After all, who in this ritzy neighborhood wants the common Targus tote when you can get something more fashionable, say, a cute floral-patterned laptop bag by Sigrid Olsen? (Just $199.99!)

The spacious three-level location also features two swank sound-proof booths so Upper West Side shoppers can crank up the Michael Buble on titanium horn-loaded tweeters as high as 75 decibels without disturbing the sleeping billionaires in the pricey condos upstairs.

"No other store in the city has one," asserted Luiz, one of many overly friendly, earpiece-equipped employees, who seemingly outnumbered customers by about 2 to 1 on this particular afternoon.

He also pointed to the "trippy" strip of soft blue lighting in the ceiling as another amenity exclusive to the new location.