Abstract:The traditional business focus of credit co-operatives is locally oriented and business success is explained by the efficient way to induce monitoring of borrowers. Church-based credit co-operatives in Germany are not that locally oriented but were extraordinary successful over the last decades. First, this analysis describes the special characteristics of church-based institutions compared to other credit co-operatives. This part is based on a historical backward glance, an analysis of annual reports and a survey on their business policy. Second, we discuss the special characteristics of church-based credit co-operatives to explain the business success in a broader context and to understand the perspectives of credit co-operative banking beyond the local orientation.

　　Subjects: Cooperative societies; Success in business; Business; Creative ability in business; Germany; Religious organizations; Church

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