In the U.S., credit unions have a clear organizational structure. All credit unions belong to one or the other parent credit union (there are 35 of them in the U.S.). To get a loan in the credit union a shareholder must be not only a formally adopted there, but necessary pay in cash contributions, the amount and order of payment of which approved by the General Assembly and fixed by the charter. In recent decades, many credit unions began to resort to such form of service as First Credit Union was savings unprofitable institution, or rather credit cooperative, providing services to its members. Typically new members of the credit union become citizens having suretyship or recommendations from their friends - members of the credit union. A potential new member of a credit union must submit a recommendation of shareholders in which the referee becomes a warrant of a future member of the credit union. Credit unions appeared in England in the 19th century. In 1844 a group of workers from Rochdale established the first cooperative. The relationship between credit unions and shareholders arise from the membership and are not customer relationship. Credit unions, like today's credit unions, emerged in the 19th century in Germany as a result of crop failure and famine.