Credit unions are member-owned and member-governed financial cooperatives. The first financial cooperatives were established in Europe in the mid-1800s and spread to North America at the beginning of the 20th century. In Canada, Alphonse Desjardins is recognized for launching the first credit union in Quebec. Desjardins was also instrumental in establishing the first U.S. credit union in Manchester, New Hampshire, in 1908. Twenty-six years after creating the first U.S. credit union, the U.S. Federal Credit Union Act was passed, which was instrumental in providing structure around the credit union movement.

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