Keeping money in the bank has long become part and parcel of our everyday lives. We even forget that not to long ago, money was kept in the relative safety of people's houses. While keeping money in the bank is not required by any law, it has become so pervasive that we all assume that everyone has at least one bank account.

For the sake of those who may be new to banking, the basics of banking are as follows:

What are the types of banks available?

Commercial Banks

These are the most common type of banks. They offer many services including checking accounts, savings accounts and loans for any purpose. They are usually regulated by a body, the state or the federal government. In the case of the UK, banks such as the Lloyds bank are regulated by the Financial Services Authority - the UK regulatory body of financial institutions.

Credit Unions

A credit union is a bank which is formed by a group of people in the same field - like nurses or teachers - or working for the same company or have something in common. Profits are shared by all members but you have to be a part of that particular group in order to open an account. For instance you cannot join a credit union of nurses if you are an attorney and vice versa. There are also credit unions that are based on geographical areas. In such cases, if you do not live in that particular vicinity you cannot join the credit union. Typically you can open and account with between $5.00 to $50.00. Another advantage is that loans are given at a lower rate than commercial banks. Learn more about credit unions here

Savings And Loans Association

These type of banks exist to mainly provide substantial loans such as home loans using money from their customers' savings account. Usually you can get everything most commercial banks offer except checking account on which you have to pay interest. They tend to be better with savings account as they generally offer better interest rates.

Continue this tutorial with The Types Of Accounts Available - Checking Accounts