Zelle^® FAQs

Zelle^® is a fast, safe and easy way to send money directly between almost any bank accounts in the U.S., typically within minutes¹. With just an email address or U.S. mobile phone number, you can send money to people you trust, regardless of where they bank¹.

You can send, request, or receive money with Zelle^®.

To send money, simply use our Mobile App or Online Banking to enroll your East West Bank account in Zelle^®.  Then, enter the email address or U.S. mobile number of your friend to initiate your send money request. If they are already enrolled in Zelle^®, they will generally receive the money within minutes¹. 

To receive money, simply share your enrolled email address or U.S. mobile phone number with a friend and ask them to send you money with Zelle^®. If you have already enrolled with Zelle^®, you do not need to take any further action. The money will be sent directly into your East West Bank account, typically within minutes¹.

Note: Zelle^® is currently only available in English. If you are interested in learning more, you can refer to the instructions on the Zelle^® page for step-by-step guidance on how to use  Zelle^®. 

It’s easy — Zelle^® is already available within the East West Bank Mobile App and Online Banking! Check our app or sign-in online and follow a few simple steps to enroll with Zelle^® today.

Your email address or U.S. mobile phone number may already be enrolled with Zelle^® at another bank or credit union.

If you would like to move your email address or U.S. mobile phone number from the financial institution where you initially enrolled with Zelle^®, simply click “Transfer” when prompted during the Zelle^® enrollment process and confirm your desired changes.

Once you transfer your email address or U.S. mobile phone number, it will be connected to your bank account at the financial institution you selected and you can start sending and receiving money with Zelle^® right away.  

When you enroll with Zelle^® through the East West Bank Mobile App or Online Banking, your name, the name of your bank, and the email address or U.S. mobile number you enrolled is shared with Zelle^® (no sensitive account details are shared – those stay with East West Bank). When someone sends money to your enrolled email address or U.S. mobile number, Zelle^® looks up the email address or mobile number in its “directory” and notifies East West Bank of the incoming payment. East West Bank then directs the payment into your East West Bank account, all while keeping your sensitive account details private.

Keeping your money and information safe is a top priority for East West Bank. When you use Zelle^® within our Mobile App or Online Banking, your information is protected with the same technology we use to keep your East West Bank account safe.

You can send money to friends, family and others you trust¹ even if their account is at a different U.S. bank or credit union.

Since money is sent directly from your East West Bank account to another person’s bank account within minutes¹, it’s important to only send money to people you trust, and always ensure you’ve used the correct email address or U.S. mobile number.

If you don’t know the person, or aren’t sure you will get what you paid for (for example, items bought from an online bidding or sales site), you should not use Zelle^®.

These types of transactions are potentially high risk (just like sending cash to a person you don’t know is high risk). Neither East West Bank nor Zelle^® offers a protection program for any authorized payments made with Zelle^® – for example, if you do not receive the item you paid for or the item is not as described or as you expected. 

Zelle^® is a great way to send money to family, friends, and people you are familiar with such as your personal trainer, babysitter or neighbor¹.   

Since money is sent directly from your East West Bank account to another person’s bank account within minutes¹, Zelle^® should only be used to send money to friends, family and others you trust.

Neither East West Bank nor Zelle^® offers a protection program for any authorized payments made with Zelle^® – for example, if you do not receive the item you paid for or the item is not as described or as you expected. 

Some small businesses are able to receive payments with Zelle^®. Ask your favorite small business if they accept payments with Zelle^®. If they do, you can pay them directly from the East West Bank Mobile App or Online Banking using just their Zelle^® enrolled email address or U.S. mobile number.

Neither East West Bank nor Zelle^® offers a protection program for any authorized payments made with Zelle^®, so you should only send money to people (and small businesses) you trust. Also, always ensure you’ve used the correct email address or U.S. mobile number when sending money.

In order to use Zelle^®, the sender and recipient’s bank or credit union accounts must be based in the U.S.

You can only cancel a payment if the person you sent money to hasn’t yet enrolled with Zelle^®. To check whether the payment is still pending because the recipient hasn’t yet enrolled, you can go to your activity page, choose the payment you want to cancel, and then select “Cancel This Payment.” If you do not see this option available, please contact our customer support team for assistance with canceling the pending payment, if available.

If the person you sent money to has already enrolled with Zelle^®, the money is sent directly to their bank account and cannot be canceled. This is why it’s important to only send money to people you trust, and always ensure you’ve used the correct email address or U.S. mobile number when sending money. 

If you sent money to the wrong person, we recommend contacting the recipient to request the money back. If you aren’t able to get your money back, please contact our customer support team.

East West Bank does not charge any fees¹ to use Zelle^® with your personal checking account.

The amount of money you can send, as well as the frequency is set by each participating financial institution. Standard limits are $500 per transaction and $500 daily, but individual limits may vary by customer. If you need more information on East West Bank’s send limits or to request a limit increase, please contact our customer support team.

There are no limits to the amount of money you can receive with Zelle^®. However, remember that the person sending you money will most likely have limits set by their own financial institution on the amount of money they can send you.

You can find a full list of participating banks and credit unions that are live with Zelle^® here.

If your recipient’s bank isn’t on the list, don’t worry! The list of participating financial institutions is always growing, and your recipient can still use Zelle^® by downloading the Zelle^® app for Android and iOS.

To enroll with the Zelle^® app, your recipient will enter their basic contact information, an email address and U.S. mobile number, and a Visa^® or Mastercard^® debit card with a U.S. based account (does not include U.S. territories). Zelle^® does not accept debit cards associated with international deposit accounts or any credit cards.

Yes! They will receive an email or text message notification via the email or U.S. mobile number they used to enroll with Zelle^®.

If you have already enrolled with Zelle^®, you do not need to take any further action. The money will be sent directly into your East West Bank account, typically within minutes¹.

If you have not yet enrolled with Zelle^®, follow these steps:

1. Click on the link provided in the payment notification you received via email or text message.
2. Select East West Bank.
3. Follow the instructions provided on the page to enroll and receive your payment. Pay attention to the email address or U.S. mobile number where you received the payment notification - you should enroll with Zelle^® using that email address or U.S. mobile number to ensure you receive your money.

Money sent with Zelle^® is typically available to an enrolled recipient within minutes¹.

If you send money to someone who isn’t enrolled with Zelle^®, they will receive a notification prompting them to enroll. After enrollment, the money will be sent directly to your recipient’s account, typically within minutes^{1, 2}.

If your payment is pending, we recommend confirming that the person you sent money to has enrolled with Zelle^® and that you entered the correct email address or U.S. mobile phone number.

If you’re waiting to receive money, you should check to see if you’ve received a payment notification via email or text message. If you haven’t received a payment notification, we recommend following up with the sender to confirm they entered the correct email address or U.S. mobile phone number.

Still having trouble? Please contact our customer support team.

Zelle^® is currently only available in English. If you are interested in learning more, you can refer to the instructions on the Zelle^® page for a step-by-step guide on how to use Zelle^®  within our East West Bank Mobile App or Online Banking.