Early Warning Services, LLC, the network operator behind Zelle®, today announced $133 billion was sent through the Zelle Network® on 519 million transactions during the first six months of 2020.

Physical distancing requirements continue to drive strong adoption of Zelle, with enrollment growing 17% over the prior year. Active sender usage – those who have sent a payment in the past 90 days – increased by 43% year-over-year. Average transactions sent per user increased 10% year-over-year, with many consumers using Zelle to pay back neighbors for groceries or to send money to friends and family. Network-wide payment transaction values increased by 60% year-over-year, while payment transaction volume increased by 63%.

"Zelle has become an everyday essential for consumers who need to send and receive money fast," said Lou Anne Alexander, Chief Product Officer at Early Warning. "Consumers across all generations have embraced Zelle during these challenging times as a contact-free way to safely exchange funds."

Currently, 924 financial institutions are contracted to participate in the Zelle Network with more than half online today and processing transactions. In total, more than 7,000 financial institutions are represented in the Zelle Network via their customers using the Zelle app or their mobile banking app.

"Zelle offers many benefits to consumers, small businesses and people in need of disbursements, which was especially important during the first half of the year when critical sectors of the economy were impacted," said Ravi Loganathan, Chief Analytics Officer at Early Warning. "Government stimulus payments were distributed to consumers in response to the pandemic, then consumers used Zelle to send money to pay family, friends and neighbors."

Zelle Enables Critical Payment Needs  

Disbursements with Zelle enabled a Bank of America customer, the Wounded Warrior Project, to distribute more than $8 Million to wounded veterans in urgent financial crisis due to the sudden loss of household income. More than 11,000 wounded, ill, and injured service members received a $1,000 grant per household to help cover their immediate needs for food and shelter.

Small businesses have also started to accept Zelle payments from customers. Currently, seven financial institutions — Bank of America, Chase, Citi, Frost Bank, FirstBank, Morgan Stanley, and U.S. Bank — have made Zelle available to their small business clients. This enables small businesses such as property owners and service providers in fitness and home to offer an easy payment experience for customers while enhancing their cash flow, with payments sent directly to their bank account, typically within minutes between enrolled users.

With the ability to receive money by sharing just an email address or U.S. mobile number with their customers, small businesses automatically have a record of all payments received, reducing the need to handle cash and checks. In addition to getting paid by their customers with Zelle, these small businesses are also disbursing payroll and paying other eligible small businesses using Zelle.

About Zelle®

Brought to you by Early Warning Services, LLC, an innovator in payment and risk management solutions, Zelle makes it fast, safe, and easy for money to move. The Zelle Network® connects financial institutions of all sizes, enabling consumers and businesses to send fast digital payments to people they know and trust with a bank account in the U.S. Funds are available directly in bank accounts generally within minutes when the recipient is already enrolled with Zelle. To learn more about Zelle and its participating financial institutions, visit www.zellepay.com.

About Early Warning Services, LLC

Early Warning Services, LLC is a fintech company owned by seven of the country's largest banks. For almost three decades, our identity, risk management, and payment solutions have been empowering financial institutions to make confident decisions, enable payments, and mitigate fraud. Today, Early Warning is best known as the owner and operator of the Zelle Network®, a financial services network focused on transforming payment experiences. The combination of Early Warning's risk and payment solutions enable the financial services industry to move money fast, safe, and easy, so people can live their best financial lives. To learn more about Early Warning, visit www.earlywarning.com  

Zelle and the Zelle related marks are property of Early Warning Services, LLC.