The purpose of this article is to assess how the Finnish Cooperatives Act should be devel-oped so that it would better reflect the Cooperative Principles laid down by the Internation-al Cooperative Alliance. There is much evidence showing that cooperatives are important (socio)economic actors, hence, cooperative identity needs to be preserved through legisla-tion. It is, for example, argued that the principles of one member one vote and concern for the community should be enhanced through legislation. Furthermore, equity-based financ-ing instruments that promote investor interests should not be developed further. Instead, attention should be paid to such financing methods that are better aligned with the Coop-erative Principles.