Dismissal of CFPB’s Zelle case marks shift to ‘collective effort’ in consumer protection

The Trump administration isn’t slowing down its efforts to defang the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), with lawsuits dropped against a handful of big banks and financial services firms, most notably a case previously accusing payments app Zelle of failing to secure its network.

The CFPB dismissed its lawsuit Tuesday “with prejudice” against Zelle’s founder, Early Warning Services, along several big banks behind the payments app, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo. 

“We welcome the CFPB’s decision to drop its lawsuit against the Zelle network,” a Zelle spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “As we’ve said before, this lawsuit was without merit, and legally and factually flawed.”

In another emailed statement, a JPMorgan Chase spokesperson said, “Banks play a crucial role in scam prevention and consumer education, but this is a national security problem that requires a collective effort across the public and private sectors.”