League Immediately Contacts Sen. Warner Following Lawmaker's Letter to Regulators on Zelle Network Fraud

Your League immediately contacted Sen. Mark Warner today in response to a letter co-signed by the senator to federal banking regulators that urged the agencies to "closely review and examine the customer reimbursement and anti-money laundering (AML) practices of depository institutions that participate in the Zelle network."

"We share the senator's concerns regarding financial fraud in all its many forms, but it's important we remind lawmakers that credit unions comply with all applicable laws with regard to Regulation E and the Electronic Funds Transfer Act," said Virginia Credit Union League President/CEO Carrie Hunt. "Fraud losses at a credit union are a cost borne by every member at that credit union so we have every incentive to protect our members and educate them about fraud prevention and using the utmost care when initiating and authorizing electronic payments."

"We also appreciate Sen. Warner's leadership on cyber issues of every sort, including fraud and consumer privacy," said Hunt, "and we'll continue to engage with him on this issue. And while we remain committed to protecting and assisting our members in cases of fraud, credit unions believe this discussion should focus not on punishing law-abiding financial institutions, but on what we can do to educate consumers about such scams, what solutions we can develop and deploy to identify and prevent such fraud, and what we can do to root out and punish those who perpetrate these scams."

In addition to Sen. Warner, the letter was also signed by Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI), Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), chair of the Senate Banking Committee.

Read the letter from the senators