Where is it safe to put your money? People who were worried about the safety of their money-market mutual funds earlier in the week may now rest a little easier.

The Treasury Department on Friday said it will insure any publicly offered money-market mutual funds, both retail and institutional, that pay a fee.

The plan calls for the Federal Reserve to buy agency discount notes from primary dealers, acting as a resource when and if money-market mutual funds want to sell their assets.

In addition, the Fed will extend nonrecourse loans to banks to finance their purchases of asset-backed commercial paper from money-market managers facing redemption demands.

President Bush authorized up to $50 billion in protection while the Treasury Department said it has the authority of the Exchange Stabilization Fund to act.

Investment Co. Institute president and chief executive officer Paul Schott Stevens issued the following statement Friday in response to measures announced to stabilize U.S. financial markets:

"Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke took decisive action this morning to protect investors from the effects of the severe liquidity problems that have strained U.S. and global financial markets.

"The steps they have taken should help free up trading in commercial paper and other key markets in which money market mutual funds and others participate.

"We believe these actions will go a long way toward restoring order in the markets and building investor confidence after a period of extraordinary turmoil that has affected money market mutual funds and other financial products."

Investors who are still leery about investing in money-market mutual funds of any kind might want to put their money in the bank, where funds are insured up to $100,000 per account and up to $250,000 for some retirement accounts by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Joint accounts are insured for $100,000 per account holder.

Another option is to put funds in a certificate of deposit. These are currently paying around 2 percent per year, more for longer maturities. They are insured by the FDIC and are available from banks, savings-and-loan associations and credit unions.

Treasuries are another possible, ultrasafe investment, but so many people rushed to buy them last week, when the outlook was dire, that their yields have been reduced drastically. Most financial advisers don't recommend them except to the most fearful investors.

Advisors also encourage investors to diversify their holdings, choosing several financial institutions to minimize risk.