President Barack Obama is ready to roll out an overhaul of the intricate rules and systems that govern America’s troubled financial institutions, proposing the most ambitious revision since the Great Depression. The goal is to prevent a recurrence of the economic crisis that erupted in the United States and exploded last fall with devastating consequences still reverberating around the world.

Unlike the government’s temporary ownership stake in automakers and major financial companies, the regulatory changes set to be announced Wednesday are designed to be permanent. They could result in a major realignment of power and authority among government agencies that set the rules for banking, lending and investing and touch American lives through daily transactions, from credit cards to mortgages and mutual funds. The proposals already are the source of a spirited debate in Congress over whether Obama’s measures will prove too timid or place too heavy a hand on the levers of capitalism.

At issue is a 21st century system of high-stakes swaps and trades, bets and losses where trillions of dollars worth of investment products have grown too intricate for a 20th century regulatory structure.

Imagine today’s financial transactions as an athletic contest where the referees have lost their vantage point. Plays occur out of their sight and fouls go undetected. Some referees halt play while others let it go on. Even the players have had enough.

“On a macro-basis, we’re very supportive of reform,” said Tim Ryan, president and chief executive of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association. Internally, the administration has vacillated over whether to streamline the vast array of regulatory agencies.

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