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.). Specialization of credit unions to provide financial services to its shareholders requires a particularly strict regulation of membership and acceptable activities. When organizing the credit union it is important that people know each other and know the extent to which each of them is trustworthy. 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. Credit unions of the open type are still controlled by their members, but at the same time provide services to people who are not its members (external customers). Contributions from of shareholders in credit unions in no way can be considered as borrowed funds, they come from the shareholders and for the shareholders and can not be used to provide services to third parties. Standards by which credit unions build their work do not coincide with the standards and regulations of consumer cooperation of the usual type. On the consumer credit market in the U.S. credit unions are on the third place after the commercial banks and finance companies and are ahead of savings institutions, not taking into account the loans on 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.