Zelle expands across community banks, data reveals

According to Zelle’s 2025 data report, 337 financial institutions either launched Zelle or signed up to use it, with 97% being community banks and credit unions holding less than $10 billion in assets.

The report reveals:

“Zelle already reaches 80% of U.S. bank and credit union accounts and last year was about widening access – deliberately and at scale,” said Denise Leonhard, general manager of Zelle. “Deployment looks very different at a rural community credit union than at a major metro bank, and not every institution starts with the same tech stack. That’s why we moved decisively to expand our reseller partnerships – helping reduce the technology lift, accelerate adoption and extend Zelle to more communities, all while maintaining the consumer protection standards and reliability that define the network.”

The network reports that most Zelle transactions are for essential expenses, such as rent and recurring bills.