To date, credit unions - virtually the only form of financial institution where people can quickly and without any problems get a relatively inexpensive cash loan. The first credit union in the United States was founded in 1909. by the group of Franco-American Catholics in Manchester, New Hampshire, and was called "Cooperative Credit Association of St. Mary. " Activity of the credit union consists of organizing mutual financial assistance by meeting the needs of its members in the services of saving and obtaining loans. Among the U.S. credit unions, there are three groups that differ in terms of assets, shareholders, and business services. All the members of the credit union, regardless of gender, ethnicity, religious and political beliefs, as well as the size of the monetary share have equal rights. The main advantage of credit unions consists in transparency, controllability, governance for shareholders. Taking a decision to join a credit union, citizens create an organization through which they participate in the shared savings by mutual crediting and joint (collective) use of personal savings. 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.