National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) - an independent federal agency, based in Washington (State of Columbia), established by the U.S. Congress to oversee the federal credit union system. Like the credit cooperatives, credit unions form associations of a higher level, which are called corporate credit unions. Credit unions encourage the proper use of shareholders savings, developing social programs (education, health, recreation, housing, etc.). The specifics of credit unions and, in some sense, their uniqueness lies in the fact that they work not for profit and do not appropriate profit.