Rural credit cooperatives are the official banks of the country. Rural credit cooperatives refer to rural cooperative financial institutions approved by the People's Bank of China. They are composed of members who have invested in shares, and the general institutions implement democratic decision-making, mainly to provide relevant financial services for members of rural credit cooperatives.

China Rural Credit Cooperative is an independent enterprise legal person and is responsible for its debts with all its assets. Its main task is to raise idle funds in rural areas and provide financial services for agriculture, farmers and rural economic development. In accordance with national laws and financial policies, organize and standardize rural funds, support agricultural production and comprehensive rural development, support various forms of cooperative economy and family economy, and limit and crack down on usury.

Rural credit cooperatives are also credit cooperative institutions. The so-called credit cooperative institutions are cooperative financial institutions whose main purpose is mutual assistance, referred to as "credit cooperatives", which carry out deposit and loan business among members for the purpose of mutual assistance and self-help. The establishment of credit cooperatives is directly related to the development of natural economy and small commodity economy. Due to the seasonal, decentralized and small-scale characteristics of agricultural producers and small commodity producers, it is difficult for small producers and farmers to get the support of bank loans, but objectively, the development of production and circulation must solve the difficulty of insufficient funds, so this kind of mutual aid self-help credit organization established by means of capital contribution and deposit has emerged.