You may have recently heard that Early Warning® Services has decided to decommission the Zelle® Common Mobile Application (CMA), also known as the Purple App or the Zelle® standalone app, for out-of-network transactions. This significant change will impact how users send and receive money, particularly those who rely on the standalone app because their institution is not a Zelle Network® participant.
Who Should Care?
More than 2,200 financial institutions are on the Zelle Network® today. This includes over 300 banks and credit unions supported by Jack Henry™ through its proprietary instant payments hub, JHA PayCenter™, and hundreds more Jack Henry institutions supported by other Zelle® processors.
But those are not the only institutions who need to keep reading—even those not offering Zelle®, but whose accountholders use the Zelle® Common Mobile App to send money to or receive money from in-network users should read on. So, basically, everyone.
Knowing this decommissioning is happening, let’s take a look at the timeline, the implications for participant banks and credit unions, and how to identify Zelle® transactions in your institution’s activity.
Why Now?
Zelle® has experienced incredible growth since its launch in 2017, today reaching around 80% of all Demand Deposit Accounts (DDAs) through participant institutions. As a result, Zelle® is processing fewer and fewer out-of-network transactions.
Timeline for Decommissioning
The decommissioning process for the Zelle® Common Mobile App will occur in two phases:
- New Enrollment Stops: As of January 8, 2025, new users are no longer be able to enroll in the Zelle® stand-alone app.
- Last Supported Transactions: Existing users will be able to send and receive money using the app until March 31, 2025. After this date, the app will no longer support transactions at all.
Impact on Participant Banks and Credit Unions
The decommissioning of the Zelle® Common Mobile App will have several notable impacts, including:
- No More Out-of-Network Transactions - Users at participating institutions (in-network users) will no longer be able to send money to out-of-network users (those who enrolled using the debit card on the Common Mobile App). Period. End of story. This means that all Zelle® transactions will need to be conducted through a bank or credit union’s mobile app or online banking platform moving forward. Meaning, if your bank or credit union isn’t on the network, your accountholders won’t be able to access Zelle®.
- A Simplified Reconciliation Process - The good news is the reconciliation process for banks and credit unions will become more straightforward. Eliminating the need to manage out-of-network transactions will naturally streamline internal processes for financial institutions.
- Elimination of Settlement Fees - Additionally, banks and credit unions will no longer incur fees for settling transactions over the Visa Direct and Mastercard Send networks. This change can mean cost savings for your institution, as you will only need to manage transactions that are within the Zelle Network®.
Identifying Zelle Transactions in Transaction Activity
If you want to know the impact the decommission will have on your institution’s users, a quick search of account history can identify out-of-network Zelle® transactions. Debit transactions will show up in your account activity with *zel or *ZEL.
Zelle is not going away!
Maybe this should have been the headline: the Zelle Network® is not going away. It will continue to be offered through a growing roster of participating institutions across the country.
If your accountholders have been relying on the Zelle® standalone app because you don’t have a P2P offering yet, it’s time to learn more and make a plan.
And for institutions already participating with Zelle®, this change should make the platform easier for your team to support in terms of reconciliation.
Zelle® and the Zelle® related marks are wholly owned by Early Warning Services, LLC and are used herein under license.
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