Abstract. The evaluation of the present offer of banking products and services in the developed countries as well in the emerging ones shows the extent to which they fulfill or not the principles specific to social responsibility and ethics in economics. Considering heightened competition, some institutions adopt new strategies based on the creation of new concepts where human finality is to replace economical finality. Thus, banking ethics and social responsibility are concepts which are found at the level of credit cooperative and ethical banks. Oriented mainly towards rural financing and financing social responsible projects, within the study, the two approaches complete and sustain each other.

Keywords: ethic bank; credit cooperation; microcredits; social responsibility; rural financing.