Furthermore, every CUSO must explicitly allow the National Credit Union Administration the right to review its books and records, which must be maintained according to GAAP.
However, many credit unions, using an old co-operative tradition, reward the users of the CUSO services by providing incentives to the owners to use them.
There can be a pay or play component where a credit union that is a heavy user of the CUSO services contributes less capital or lower fees.
For example, not all credit unions have the capital to gain the expertise to originate business and commercial real estate loans.
But, if several credit unions pool their resources they can afford to hire the right individuals and in turn provide a valuable service to their members.