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. " Main share of credit unions assets is concentrated in loans (about 50%), while the share of consumer loans in commercial banks and finance companies active operations rarely exceeds 15%. The most common type of loans in credit unions are loans to purchase new and used cars (40%), followed by first mortgages and second mortgages (35%), about 10% are unsecured personal loans to member of unions and about 15% - are loans on credit cards and other loans. Is necessary that all shareholders of the credit union were members of a single community, would know each other well enough to enjoy mutual trust. The main advantage of credit unions consists in transparency, controllability, governance for shareholders. Until the mid-XX century, credit unions in the United States had little assets that did not exceed, as a rule, 100 thousand dollars Standards by which credit unions build their work do not coincide with the standards and regulations of consumer cooperation of the usual type.