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===TOP NEGOTIATOR OF GLASSTop Negotiator of Glass-STEAGALL REPEALSteagall Repeal===

Sperling also served as a principal negotiator with then-Treasury Secretary [[Lawrence Summers ]] in finalizing the Financial Modernization Act of 1999, also known as Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. Gramm-Leach-Bliley repealed large portions of the depression-era Glass-Steegal Act allowing banks, securities firms and insurance companies to merge. <ref>National Economic Council [http://clinton4.nara.gov/WH/EOP/nec/html/sperling.html Profile of Gene Sperling]</ref> President [[Barack Obama ]] believes that the repeal of these depression-era protections helped cause the 2007 subprime sub-prime mortgage financial crisis.<ref>"Ten Questions for Those Fixing the Financial Mess," Wall Street Journal (Mar. 10, 2009), available via http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123665023774979341.html </ref>