President Barack Obama is considering nominating University Professor Lawrence H. Summers to head the World Bank, according to a Bloomberg report published Wednesday.

The article, which cites two unnamed sources, also said that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is under consideration for the position.

Summers is a prominent economist known for both his work in government and his work as an academic at Harvard.

In addition to serving as University President, Summers held the post of Secretary of the Treasury under President Bill Clinton and acted as director of Obama’s National Economic Council. Summers was also the Chief Economist for the World Bank in the early 90s.

“Larry is controversial,” former White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles told Bloomberg. “Anything you appoint Larry to, you know there are going to be some people who are going to take shots at him. But you know he’s a brilliant economist, which I think everybody recognizes.”

Summers declined to comment.

—Staff writer Justin C. Worland can be reached at jworland@college.harvard.edu.