To reduce the risk of default on loans members of the credit union shall the joint guarantee. Until the mid-XX century, credit unions in the United States had little assets that did not exceed, as a rule, 100 thousand dollars Credit unions appeared in England in the 19th century. In 1844 a group of workers from Rochdale established the first cooperative. Credit unions, like today's credit unions, emerged in the 19th century in Germany as a result of crop failure and famine. Credit union as a consumer cooperative operates on the principles of equality of all its members.