When we think of the beginnings of the credit union movement, most of us will inevitably think of the greats: Edward Filene, Roy Bergengren, Alphonse Dejardins, etc. But financial cooperatives, including credit unions, have a long and powerful history around the world, and have had so long before President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the Federal Credit Union Act into law in 1934 or Filene found inspiration in India. 

While the first credit union arrived in the U.S. in 1908, we can trace credit unions’ lineage all the way back to the people’s banks created in Germany in the 1850s. If we look to financial cooperatives as a whole, we can go back even further, to the Japanese gojoukou, founded by Ninomiya Sontoku in the early 1800s. 

While many of these early credit unions took inspiration from one another (such as Filene from Alphonse and Alphones from those early German credit unions), cooperative, community-based financial institutions cropped up worldwide, often in a vacuum for one simple reason: people, no matter where and no matter their status, need accessible and affordable financial services and solutions. And credit unions have always been that answer.

Now, hundreds of years later, our cooperative movement serves over 412 million members worldwide and boasts upwards of 67,000 credit unions. But we didn’t get there overnight; we got there thanks to the tireless work of those early pioneers, of the teachers pooling their money in the cigar box, of the neighbors rallying together to provide safe loans where only predatory options existed before, and of course, of the everyday employees and champions who have kept that mission alive since.

With literal centuries worth of history, inspiring leaders, and endless examples of people helping people through credit unions, we at CUSO Magazine think it’s only right to honor that history. Which is why we decided to name July Credit Union History Month, where we aim to take a look back at the founding of our movement and all the good credit unions have been doing since.

What is Credit Union History Month

In creating Credit Union History Month, our hope was that this celebration offers our movement the opportunity to slow down and reflect. To step away from talks of the future, the Next Big Thing, the growing merger trends, the ways to increase asset size, etc., and look instead at the past to our roots, remembering why financial cooperatives exist, what need credit unions were filling when they were created, and what communities and people they were meant to serve.

The goal is not only to keep these stories and histories alive by sharing them, but to bring them front of mind, so that individual credit unions—and our industry as a whole—might reflect on our original mission. As credit unions have grown and evolved over the years, expanded fields of membership, and merged into one another, those histories and missions can feel distant, muddled, or a thing of the past. But in the words of Maya Angelou, “If you don’t know where you’ve come from, you don’t know where you’re going.”

For many, this event might be a great chance to feel validated in the work that you and the credit union continue to do, most likely decades beyond your founding. For others, it might offer perspective and help some realign with the credit union mission, remembering that our goal is not to be mega financial institutions on par with the big banks, but the alternative to them.

How to get involved

So, what can you, dear reader, expect from this event? Well, throughout the month of July, CUSO Magazine will be taking a deep dive into the foundations of the credit union system and examining each brick that was laid upon that foundation.

In a new series for this year, we’ll travel back in time and follow Filene’s journey through India, the Philippines, and more, on his quest to bring financial cooperatives to the US. We’ll also have featured articles on key credit union icons and moments—so keep an eye out! Additionally, Credit Union History Month will be coming to social media in a big way this year! We’ll be posting daily content throughout July, including spotlights on credit unions and their histories, trivia Tuesdays, and fun fact Fridays!

While we at CUSO Magazine hope that our credit union readers enjoy the glimpse back into credit union origins this month offers and the content we’ve prepped, this month should not be a passive event on your end! Participation in the event doesn’t require a big party (though we won’t discourage it). Instead, simply take a few dedicated minutes to reflect on how your credit union got to where it is now, and how that inspires where you’re going next. Because despite the decades between the credit union’s founding and now, that original purpose and mission should still ring true today, and help guide the path forward.

Let’s celebrate together

In our humble opinion, Credit Union History Month is a long-overdue necessity, especially for an industry as unique and people-focused as ours. While CUSO Magazine is thrilled to do the heavy lifting, we hope to see credit unions and CUSOs getting in on the action as well! So, pull up a chair and join us on a journey back to our origins this month as we spotlight the key moments, players, and victories of credit unions.