Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Thursday that a bailout for banks was steadying the financial system but care must be taken to ensure that normal market forces are allowed to operate.

"While TARP (the Troubled Asset Relief Program) is proving effective at improving the immediate stability of the financial system, the scope of the issues this administration and this department face … include striking the delicate balance between intervention and allowing market participants latitude to operate," he said in prepared remarks for delivery to the House Appropriations Committee.