The uniqueness of credit unions is that they put together the principles and benefits of financial cooperatives, consumer cooperatives and mutual aid funds, born once by trade unions. Until the 70's there was a proliferation of the U.S. credit unions due to the increase of their number and the number of shareholders, although it must be acknowledged that there was also and a qualitative growth. The value of credit unions is not limited to the role of the economic agent - they are an important element of the social structure and a factor of social stability and progress. Standards by which credit unions build their work do not coincide with the standards and regulations of consumer cooperation of the usual type. U.S. credit unions have another significant difference from the credit cooperatives of farmers: the first have major proportion of short-term loans, the second - long and mostly in real estate.