Credit unions encourage savings of citizens, setting compensation payments (interest) on savings and provide from these savings loans to their members. Principles of cooperative democracy and interaction were adequate to the purposes for which people joined credit unions. First Credit Union was savings unprofitable institution, or rather credit cooperative, providing services to its members. As of the January 1, 2012 the national associations and confederations unite more than 196 million members participating in the 51,013 credit unions in 100 countries. 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. In the UK, credit unions are a source of financing of people groups. This tool is not widely used. U.S. credit unions have another significant difference from the credit cooperatives of farmers: the first have major proportion of short-term loans, the second - long and mostly in real estate. To increase the number of credit unions in 1979 was adopted the corresponding law that serves as the legal basis of their activity. 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.