Credit union

{{short description|Member-owned financial cooperative}} {{redirect2|Caisse pop|SACCO|Caisse populaire Desjardins, the Quebec credit union|Desjardins Group|other uses|Sacco (disambiguation)}} [[File:CoastalFederalCreditUnion-CreedmoorBranch.jpg|thumb|A branch of the Coastal Federal Credit Union in Raleigh, North Carolina]] {{Financial market participants}}

A '''credit union''' is a member-owned [[nonprofit organization|nonprofit]] [[cooperative]] [[financial institution]]. They may offer financial services equivalent to those of [[commercial bank]]s, such as share accounts ([[savings account]]s), share draft accounts ([[checking account|cheque account]]s), [[credit card]]s, [[Credit (finance)|credit]], share term certificates ([[Certificate of deposit|certificates of deposit]]), and [[online banking]]. Normally, only a member of a credit union may [[deposit account|deposit]] or [[loan|borrow]] [[money]].<ref name="Credit Union Act 2007" /><ref name="O'Sullivan">{{ cite book | last1 = O'Sullivan | first1 = Arthur | author-link = Arthur O'Sullivan (economist) | first2 = Steven M. | last2 = Sheffrin | title = Economics: Principles in action | publisher = Prentice Hall | year = 2003 | location = Upper Saddle River, New Jersey| page = 511 | isbn = 0-13-063085-3 }}</ref> In several African countries, a credit union is commonly referred to as a '''SACCO''' ("savings and credit co-operative").<ref>[https://www.obopay.com/blog/payments-that-matter-saccos-in-africa/#:~:text=SACCOs%20are%20popular%20in%20African,Ksh%20800%20billion%20in%20assets.&text=In%20the%202016%20FinAccess%20survey,adults%20use%20savings%2Fdeposit%20instruments. "Payments That Matter: SACCOs In Africa"].</ref>

Worldwide, credit union systems vary significantly in their total assets and average institution asset size, ranging from volunteer operations with a handful of members to institutions with hundreds of thousands of members and assets worth billions of US dollars.<ref name="cuna" /> In 2018, the number of members in credit unions worldwide was 375 million, with over 100 million members having been added since 2016.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.creditunionnetwork.eu/cus_globally#:~:text=Credit%20Unions%20Worldwide&text=They%20help%20375%20million%20members,homes%20and%20educating%20their%20children. | title=Credit Unions Globally }}</ref>

In 2006, 23.6% of mortgages from commercial banks were [[subprime lending]], compared to only 3.6% of those from credit unions, and banks were two and a half times more likely to fail during the crisis.<ref name="Li van Rijn p. ">{{cite journal | last1=Li | first1=Kangli | last2=van Rijn | first2=Jordan | title=Credit Union and Bank Lending in the Great Recession | journal=The Review of Corporate Finance Studies | publisher=Oxford University Press (OUP) | date=9 May 2022 | volume=13 | issue=2 | pages=494–538 | issn=2046-9128 | doi=10.1093/rcfs/cfac020 |url=https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm/SSRN_ID4012771_code3327643.pdf?abstractid=3506873&mirid=1&type=2}}</ref> American credit unions more than doubled lending to small businesses between 2008 and 2016, from $30 billion to $60 billion, while lending to small businesses overall during the same period declined by around $100 billion.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sba.gov/advocacy/how-did-bank-lending-small-business-united-states-fare-after-financial-crisis|title=How Did Bank Lending to Small Business in the United States Fare After the Financial Crisis? - The U.S. Small Business Administration - SBA.gov|website=www.sba.gov|access-date=2018-11-29|archive-date=2019-08-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190828223019/https://www.sba.gov/advocacy/how-did-bank-lending-small-business-united-states-fare-after-financial-crisis|url-status=dead}}</ref> In the US, public trust in credit unions stands at 60%, compared to 30% for big banks.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://nwcua.org/2014/09/03/credit-unions-twice-as-trusted-as-big-banks/|title=Credit Unions Twice as Trusted as Big Banks|access-date=2018-11-29|archive-date=2018-11-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181129100705/https://nwcua.org/2014/09/03/credit-unions-twice-as-trusted-as-big-banks/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Furthermore, small businesses are 80% more likely to be satisfied by a credit union than with a big bank.<ref>{{cite web |title=LENDER SATISFACTION |url=https://www.newyorkfed.org/medialibrary/media/smallbusiness/2016/SBCS-Report-EmployerFirms-2016.pdf#page=23 |date=April 2017}}</ref>

"Natural-person credit unions" (also called "retail credit unions" or "consumer credit unions") serve individuals, as distinguished from "[[corporate credit union]]s", which serve other credit unions.<ref>Frank J. Fabozzi & Mark B. Wickard, ''Credit Union Investment Management'' (1997), pp. 64–65.</ref><ref>Wendell Cochran, [https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna40755408 "Credit unions pay for risky behavior by a few"], ''NBC News'' (December 21, 2010).</ref><ref>[https://www.ncua.gov/resources/documents/csr/csr-6.pdf "Corporate System Resolution: Corporate Credit Unions: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)"], [[National Credit Union Administration]] (September 24, 2010).</ref>

== Differences from other financial institutions ==

[[File:Statue in Rača, Bratislava of Samuel Jurkovič, founder of the first cooperative in Central Europe, Spolok Gazdovský.jpg|thumb|Statue in Rača, Bratislava of Samuel Jurkovič, founder of the first cooperative, or credit union, in Central Europe (Spolok Gazdovský)]]

Credit unions differ from [[bank]]s and other financial institutions in that those who have accounts in the credit union are its members and owners,<ref name="Credit Union Act 2007" /> and they elect their board of directors in a [[one man one vote|one-person-one-vote system]], regardless of the amount they might have invested.<ref name="Credit Union Act 2007" /> Credit unions generally see themselves as different from mainstream banks, with a mission to be community-oriented and to "serve people, not profit".<ref name="cu_difference" /><ref name="cudiff" /><ref name="Converts" />

Surveys of customers at banks and credit unions have consistently shown significantly higher customer satisfaction rates with the quality of service at credit unions.<ref name="Service quality" /><ref name="Employee evaluations" /> Credit unions have historically claimed to provide superior member service and to be committed to helping members improve their financial situation. In the context of [[financial inclusion]], credit unions claim to provide a broader range of loan and savings products at a much cheaper cost to their members than most [[microfinance]] institutions.<ref name="What is a Credit Union" />

Credit unions differ from modern microfinance. Particularly, members' control over financial resources is the distinguishing feature between the cooperative model and modern microfinance. The current dominant model of microfinance, whether it is provided by not-for-profit or for-profit institutions, places the control over financial resources and their allocation in the hands of a small number of microfinance providers that benefit from the highly profitable sector.<ref>Amr Khafagy, [https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9780429342196 ''The Economics of Financial Cooperatives: Income Distribution, Political Economy and Regulation''], Routledge, 2019</ref>

== Not-for-profit status == In the credit union context, "[[not-for-profit]]" must be distinguished from a charity.<ref name="OED" /> Credit unions are "not-for-profit" because their purpose is to serve their members rather than to maximize profits,<ref name="What is a Credit Union" /><ref name="OED" /> so unlike charities, credit unions do not rely on donations and are financial institutions that must make what is, in economic terms, a small [[profit (economics)|profit]] (i.e., in non-profit accounting terms, a "surplus") to remain in existence.<ref name="What is a Credit Union" /><ref name="pearlsratios" /> According to the [[World Council of Credit Unions]] (WOCCU), a credit union's [[revenue]]s (from loans and investments) must exceed its operating expenses and [[dividend]]s (interest paid on deposits) in order to maintain capital and solvency.<ref name="pearlsratios" />

In the United States, credit unions incorporated and operating under a state credit union law are tax-exempt under [[501(c)|Section 501(c)(14)(A)]].<ref name="Internal Revenue Manual" /> Federal credit unions organized and operated in accordance with the [[Federal Credit Union Act]] are tax-exempt under [[501(c)|Section 501(c)(1)]].<ref name="Publication 557" />

== Global presence == [[File:Credit Union in Warangal, India.JPG|thumb|The directors of the Mulukanoor Women's Thrift Cooperative stand at the entrance to their credit union in [[Karimnagar]] district, [[Telangana]], India.]]

According to the [[World Council of Credit Unions]] (WOCCU), at the end of 2018 there were 85,400 credit unions in 118 countries. Collectively they served 274.2 million members and oversaw [[US$]]2.19 trillion in assets.<ref name="statport" /> WOCCU does not include data from [[Cooperative banking|cooperative banks]], so, for example, some countries generally seen as the pioneers of credit unionism, such as Germany, France, the Netherlands and Italy, are not always included in their data. The [[European Association of Co-operative Banks]] reported 38 million members in those four countries at the end of 2010.<ref name="eurocoopbanks" />

The countries with the most credit union activity are highly diverse. According to WOCCU, the countries with the greatest number of credit union members were the [[Credit Union National Association|United States]] (101 million), India (20 million), [[Canadian Credit Union Association|Canada]] (10 million), Brazil (6.0 million), South Korea (5.7 million), Philippines (5.4 million), Kenya and Mexico (5.1 million each), Ecuador (4.8 million), Australia (4.5 million), Thailand (4.1 million), Colombia (3.6 million), and [[Irish League of Credit Unions|Ireland]] (3.3 million).<ref name="statport" />

The countries with the highest percentage of credit union members in the economically active population were Barbados (82%),<ref name="Percival" /> Ireland (75%), Grenada (72%), Trinidad & Tobago (68%), Belize and St. Lucia (67% each), St. Kitts & Nevis (58%), Jamaica (53% each), Antigua and Barbuda (49%), the United States (48%), Ecuador (47%), and Canada (43%). Several African and Latin American countries also had high credit union membership rates, as did Australia and South Korea. The average percentage for all countries considered in the report was 8.2%.<ref name="statport" /> Credit unions were launched in Poland in 1992; {{As of|2012|lc=on}} there were 2,000 credit union branches there with 2.2 million members.<ref name="Diekmann" /> From 1996 to 2016, credit unions in Costa Rica almost tripled their share of the financial market (they grew from 3.7% of the market share to 9.9%), and grew faster than private-sector banks or state-owned banks in Costa Rica, after financial reforms in that country.<ref name="Rojas">{{cite journal |last1=Rojas |first1=Miguel |last2=Deschênes |first2=Sébastien |last3=Ramboarisata |first3=Lovasoa |last4=Leclerc |first4=André |date=February 2019 |title=The competitive edge of credit unions in Costa Rica: From financial repression to the risks of a new financial environment |journal=The Canadian Journal of Nonprofit and Social Economy Research |volume=9 |issue=2 |pages=62–79 |doi=10.22230/cjnser.2018v9n2a289 |doi-access=free }}</ref>{{rp|70}}

== History == [[File:F.W.Raiffeisen.jpg|thumb|[[Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen]] founded the first rural credit unions in Germany.]] [[File:Caisse populaire de Lévis circa 1920.jpg|thumb|A [[Desjardins Group|caisse populaire]] credit union in [[Lévis]], Quebec, {{Circa|1920}}]] {{Main|History of credit unions}}

"Spolok Gazdovský" (''The Association of Administrators'' or ''The Association of Farmers''), founded in 1845 by Samuel Jurkovič, was the first cooperative financial institution in Europe. The cooperative provided a cheap loan from funds generated by regular savings for members of the cooperative. Members of the cooperative had to commit to a moral life and had to plant two trees in a public place every year. Despite the short duration of its existence, until 1851, it thus formed the basis of the cooperative movement in Slovakia.<ref>PERNÝ, Lukáš. Samuel Jurkovič, slovenský národný buditeľ a zakladateľ družstevníctva. In: DAV DVA (2019), https://davdva.sk/samuel-jurkovic-slovensky-narodny-buditel-a-zakladatel-druzstevnictva/</ref><ref>TASR: Gazdovský spolok v Sobotišti bol prvým úverovým družstvom . In: SME (2010), https://myzahorie.sme.sk/c/5228907/gazdovsky-spolok-v-sobotisti-bol-prvym-uverovym-druzstvom-v-europe.html</ref> Slovak national thinker [[Ľudovít Štúr]] said about the association: "We would very much like such excellent constitutions to be established throughout our region. They would help to rescue people from evil and misery. A beautiful, great idea, a beautiful excellent constitution!"<ref>Ľudovít Štúr: Hospodársky ústav v Sobotišti, Orol tatranski 3. 2. 1846, č. 20</ref>

Modern credit union history dates from 1852, when [[Franz Hermann Schulze-Delitzsch]] consolidated the learning from two pilot projects, one in [[Eilenburg]] and the other in [[Delitzsch]] in the [[Kingdom of Saxony]] into what are generally recognized as the first credit unions in the world. He went on to develop a highly successful urban credit union system.<ref name="Moody" /> In 1864, [[Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen]] founded the first rural credit union in Heddesdorf (now part of [[Neuwied]]) in Germany.<ref name="Moody" /> By the time of Raiffeisen's death in 1888, credit unions had spread to Italy, France, the Netherlands, England, Austria, and other nations.<ref name="Singh" />

The first credit union in North America, the Caisse Populaire de [[Lévis]] in [[Quebec]], Canada, began operations on 23 January 1901 with a 10-cent deposit. Founder [[Alphonse Desjardins (co-operator)|Alphonse Desjardins]], a reporter in the Canadian parliament, was moved to take up his mission in 1897 when he learned of a Montrealer who had been ordered by the court to pay nearly [[Canadian dollar|Can$]]5,000 in interest on a loan of $150 from a moneylender. Drawing extensively on European precedents, Desjardins developed a unique parish-based model for Quebec: the [[Desjardins Group|''caisse populaire'']].{{citation needed|date=January 2012}}

In the United States, [[St. Mary's Bank]] Credit Union of [[Manchester, New Hampshire]], was the first credit union. Assisted by a personal visit from Desjardins, St. Mary's was founded by [[French-speaking]] [[immigrants]] to Manchester from Quebec on 24 November 1908. Several [[Little Canadas]] throughout [[New England]] formed similar credit unions, often out of necessity, as [[Anglo-America|Anglo-American]] banks frequently rejected [[Franco-Americans|Franco-American]] loans.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bélanger |first1=Damien-Claude |title=French-Canadian Emigration to the United States, 1840–1930 |url=http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/quebechistory/readings/leaving.htm |website=Québec History |publisher=Marianopolis College |access-date=5 September 2018}}</ref> [[America's Credit Union Museum]] now occupies the location of the home from which St. Mary's Bank Credit Union first operated.{{citation needed|date=January 2012}} In November 1910 the Woman's Educational and Industrial Union set up the Industrial Credit Union, modeled on the Desjardins credit unions it was the first non-faith-based community credit union serving all people in the greater Boston area. The oldest statewide credit union in the United States was established in 1913.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Fraser |first1=Evan D. G. |last2=Rimas |first2=Andrew |title=Empires of food: feast, famine, and the rise and fall of civilizations |date=2010 |publisher=Free Press |location=New York |isbn=9781439110133 |page=166 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X_OaBDzFAHwC |access-date=26 May 2024}}</ref> The St. Mary's Bank Credit Union serves any resident of the [[Commonwealth of Massachusetts]].<ref name="abettercreditunion" />

After being promoted by the [[Catholic Church]] in the 1940s to assist the poor in [[Latin America]], credit unions expanded rapidly during the 1950s and 1960s, especially in Bolivia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Peru. The Regional Confederation of Latin American Credit Unions (COLAC) was formed and with funding by the [[Inter-American Development Bank]] credit unions in the regions grew rapidly throughout the 1970s and into the early 1980s. By 1988 COLAC credit unions represented four million members across 17 countries with a loan portfolio of circa US$0.5 billion. However, from the late 1970s onwards many Latin American credit unions struggled with inflation, stagnating membership, and serious loan recovery problems. In the 1980s donor agencies such as [[USAID]] attempted to rehabilitate Latin American credit unions by providing technical assistance and focusing credit unions' efforts on mobilising deposits from the local population. In 1987, the [[Latin American debt crisis]] caused [[bank run]]s on credit unions. Significant withdrawals and high default rates caused liquidity problems for many credit unions in the region.<ref name="Balkenhol" />

==Stability and risks== Credit unions and banks in most jurisdictions are legally required to maintain a reserve requirement of assets to liabilities. If a credit union or traditional bank is unable to maintain positive cash flow and/or is forced to declare insolvency, its assets are distributed to creditors (including depositors) in order of seniority according to bankruptcy law. If the total deposits exceed the assets remaining after more senior creditors are paid, all depositors will lose some or all of their initial deposits. However, many jurisdictions have [[deposit insurance]] that promises to reimburse members for funds lost up to a certain threshold, such as the [[National Credit Union Administration]]’s [[National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund|Share Insurance Fund]] or the [[Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation]].

== Corporate == {{Main|Corporate credit union}}

Credit unions as such provide service only to individual consumers. ''Corporate credit unions'' (also known as ''central credit unions'' in Canada) provide service to credit unions, with operational support, funds clearing tasks, and product and service delivery.

== Leagues and associations == Credit unions often form cooperatives among themselves to provide services to members. A [[credit union service organization]] (CUSO) is generally a for-profit subsidiary of one or more credit unions formed for this purpose. For example, [[CO-OP Financial Services]], the largest credit-union-owned [[interbank network]] in the United States, provides an ATM network and shared branching services to credit unions. Other examples of cooperatives among credit unions include credit counselling services as well as insurance and investment services.{{citation needed|date=January 2012}}

State credit union leagues can partner with outside organizations to promote initiatives for credit unions or customers. For example, the Indiana Credit Union League sponsors an initiative called "Ignite", which is used to encourage innovation in the credit union industry, with the Filene Research Institute.<ref name="ICUL ignite program" />

The [[Credit Union National Association]] (CUNA) is a national trade association for both state- and federally chartered credit unions located in the United States. The [[National Credit Union Foundation]] is the primary charitable arm of the United States' credit union movement and an affiliate of CUNA.

The National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions (NAFCU) is a national trade association for all state and federally-chartered credit unions. Based outside of Washington, D.C., NAFCU's mission is to provide all credit unions with federal advocacy, compliance assistance, and education.

The [[World Council of Credit Unions]] (WOCCU) is both a [[trade association]] for credit unions worldwide and a [[development agency]]. The WOCCU's mission is to "assist its members and potential members to organize, expand, improve and integrate credit unions and related institutions as effective instruments for the economic and social development of all people".<ref name="about/mission" />

== Deposit insurance == In the United States, federal credit unions are chartered and overseen by the [[National Credit Union Administration]] (NCUA), which also provides deposit insurance similar to the manner in which the [[Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation]] (FDIC) provides deposit insurance to banks. State-chartered credit unions are overseen by the state's financial regulatory agency and may, but are not required to, obtain deposit insurance. Because of problems with bank failures in the past, no state provides deposit insurance and as such there are two primary sources for depository insurance – the NCUA and American Share Insurance (ASI), a private insurer based in Ohio.

In Canada, the majority of credit unions and ''caisses populaires'' are provincially incorporated and deposit insurance is provided by a provincial [[Crown corporations of Canada|Crown corporation]]. For example, in Ontario up to {{CAD}}250,000 of eligible deposits in credit unions are insured by the [[Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Deposit Insurance and Credit Unions |url=https://www.fsrao.ca/consumers/deposit-insurance-and-credit-unions |website=Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario |access-date=6 February 2020}}</ref> Federal credit unions, such as the [[UNI Financial Cooperation]] ''caisse'' in New Brunswick,<ref>{{cite web| title=Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation| url=https://www.uni.ca/en/contenu.cfm?id=2490|website=UNI Coopération financière| access-date=September 7, 2017| language=en}}</ref> are incorporated under federal charters and are members of the [[Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation]].<ref>{{cite web| title=Federal credit unions (FCUs)|url=http://www.cdic.ca/en/about-di/federal-credit-union/Pages/default.aspx| website=Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation| access-date=September 7, 2017| language=en-CA| quote=Once continued federally, FCUs become members of CDIC. As such, eligible deposits placed with an FCU enjoy CDIC deposit protection.}}</ref>

In the United Kingdom, credit unions are covered by the [[Financial Services Compensation Scheme]] in the same manner as banks and building societies (co-operative banks) are, and deposits are protected up to an amount of £85,000 per consumer and institution.<ref>{{cite web |title=Banks, building societies and credit unions |url=https://www.fscs.org.uk/what-we-cover/banks-building-societies-credit-unions/ |publisher=Financial Services Compensation Scheme |access-date=19 August 2025}}</ref>

== See also == {{Portal|Banks}} * [[Bond of association]] * [[Consumers' cooperative]] * [[Cooperative banking]] * [[Capital market]] * [[Community federal credit union]] * [[Deposit account]] * [[Democratic member control (cooperatives)]] * [[History of credit unions]] * [[Humanomics]] * [[Labour Bank]] * [[Credit unions in Canada]] * [[Credit unions in the United Kingdom]] * [[Credit unions in the United States]]

== References == {{reflist|30em|refs= <ref name="Credit Union Act 2007">{{ cite web |title=12 U.S.C. § 1752(1), CUNA Model Credit Union Act (2007) |url=http://www.ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090509071709/http://ncua.gov/RegulationsOpinionsLaws/fcu_act/fcu_act.pdf |archive-date=2009-05-09 |publisher=[[National Credit Union Administration]] |access-date=26 August 2015}}</ref>  <ref name="cuna">{{cite web | url = http://advice.cuna.org/download/combanks_cus.pdf | title = Slide 1 | access-date = 2011-10-09 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090325223318/http://advice.cuna.org/download/combanks_cus.pdf | archive-date = 2009-03-25 | url-status = dead }}</ref> <ref name="cu_difference">{{cite web | url = http://www.cuna.org/gov_affairs/legislative/cu_difference.html | publisher = Credit Union National Association | title = The Credit Union Difference | access-date = 2012-01-16 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130305141257/http://www.cuna.org/gov_affairs/legislative/cu_difference.html | archive-date = 2013-03-05 | url-status = dead}}</ref> <ref name="cudiff">{{cite web |url=https://www.cuna.org/advocacy/priorities/credit-unions-improve-financial-well-being.html|title=Fulfilling our Mission/What is the credit union? |website=Credit Union National Association|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120115021847/http://www.cuna.org/press/cudiff.html |archive-date=January 15, 2012}}</ref> <ref name="Converts">{{cite web|url=http://money.msn.com/credit-cards/converts-sing-praises-of-credit-unions-mapes.aspx?page=0 |publisher=MSN Money |title=Converts sing praises of credit unions |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309143202/http://money.msn.com/credit-cards/converts-sing-praises-of-credit-unions-mapes.aspx?page=0 |archive-date=2012-03-09 |url-status=dead}}</ref> <ref name="Service quality">{{cite journal |author1=Allred, Anthony T. |author2=Adams, H. 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== Further reading == * [[Ian MacPherson (historian)|Ian MacPherson]]. ''Hands Around the Globe: A History of the International Credit Union Movement and the Role and Development of the World Council of Credit Unions, Inc.'' Horsdal & Schubart Publishers Ltd, 1999. * [[Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen|F.W. Raiffeisen]]. ''The Credit Unions''. Trans. by Konrad Engelmann. The Raiffeisen Printing and Publishing Company, Neuwid on the Rhine, Germany, 1970. * Fountain, Wendell. ''The Credit Union World''. AuthorHouse, Bloomington, Indiana, 2007. {{ISBN|978-1-4259-7006-2}}

== External links == {{Commons category|Credit unions}} * [https://www.cuna.org/ Credit Union National Association] – national trade association for credit unions * [http://www.woccu.org/ World Council of Credit Unions] – global trade association for credit unions * [https://aaccu.coop/ Association of Asian Confederations of Credit Unions] – regional federation representing 21 national federations in Asia with 35 million retail members * [http://ncuso.org/ National Credit Union Service Organization] – directory of all credit unions in the U.S. * [http://www.ncuf.coop/ National Credit Union Foundation] – charitable arm of credit union industry

[[Category:Credit unions| ]] [[Category:Cooperative banking]] [[Category:Social economy]] [[Category:Community building]] [[Category:Financial services]]