WASHINGTON — Wasting no time after final congressional action, President Bush signed the bill passed by the House today aimed at providing relief to the nation's troubled financial system.

“By coming together on this legislation, we have acted boldly,” he said, in a statement issued before he signed it. He added that the measure represents “decisive action to ease the credit crunch that is now threatening our economy.”

The House passed the bill 1:21 p.m. by a margin of 263-171., House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signed the printed final version of the measure at 2:00 and Bush signed it at about 2:45. The Senate had passed the measure on Wednesday night.

The bill creates a fund for the government to buy illiquid assets from credit unions and other financial institutions and raises the amount of deposits covered by federal insurance from $100,000 to $250,000 through Dec. 31, 2009. Retirement account deposits will continue to insured at $250,000.