The economic basis of credit unions - finances of a household. The main objective of the credit union - to ensure financial stability of a household, to ensure the priority of their shareholders' financial interests. The difference between credit unions and banks is clearly is apparent when comparing the structure of assets and liabilities of credit unions and banks. Until the mid-XX century, credit unions in the United States had little assets that did not exceed, as a rule, 100 thousand dollars Historically, credit unions have grown from the experience of credit cooperatives, but they took the experience of organizations of mutual aid of citizens by moving methods of social self-protection from labor and toward consumption. In the UK, credit unions are a source of financing of people groups. This tool is not widely used. A credit union on its own initiative order is created by citizens (individuals) to solve their financial problems that they could not solve in other financial institutions.