Goldman Sachs mortgage chief stepping down

Sparks served as the head of the department for the past year-and-a-half.

He will be replaced by two current members of the department, Justin Gmelich and Thomas Cornacchia. Gmelich is head of U.S. credit trading. Cornacchia is head of credit sales.

Sparks oversaw Goldman Sachs' mortgage division during one of the industry's most tumultuous times. It left many investment banks taking billions of dollars in losses and seeking new investments to maintain strong capital bases.

Yet, unlike its competitors, Goldman Sachs was largely able to avoid the problems that beset the industry.

Goldman Sachs has taken only $4.4 billion in write-downs tied to the mortgage market crisis and ensuing broader fallout in the credit markets. It also remained profitable throughout the period.

Some competitors like Merrill Lynch & Co. have taken $29 billion in write-downs and regularly posted quarterly losses. The broader financial services sector has taken more than $220 billion in write-downs tied to global credit market struggles.

Shares of Goldman Sachs rose $2.85 to $191.29 in afternoon trading.