TIL that my understanding of the role of the repeal of Glass Stegal in the 2008 crash was completely wrong.

What really led to the crash was legislation pushed by Barney Frank which forced lenders to lower their lending standards and to underwrite risky mortgages. These default prone mortgages forced through legislation are what failed first starting the cascading collapse of mortgage backed securities.

The Glass Stegal narrative was pushed to obscure government housing policy’s role in the 2008 collapse.