Today in the UK there are about 700 credit unions with assets exceeding 200 million pounds. Credit unions also differ from the traditional consumer cooperatives. In the U.S. credit unions timely and full repayment of loans is a common phenomenon. Unpaid and delinquent loans are not more than 3% of their amount. Credit unions of the open type are still controlled by their members, but at the same time provide services to people who are not its members (external customers). Credit unions appeared in England in the 19th century. In 1844 a group of workers from Rochdale established the first cooperative. Credit Union - a non-profit financial institution specialized in mutual financial assistance by providing savings and credit services to their members. Credit unions historically formed as a special form of social support, initially taken upon themselves the social mission of protecting the interests of citizens in the field of financial services.