Payments app Zelle begins refunds for imposter scams after Washington pressure

FILE PHOTO: JPMorgan Chase and Company Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, and Bank of America Chairman and CEO Brian Moynihan, talk following their testimony before a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing on "Annual Oversight of the Nation's Largest Banks", on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., September 22, 2022. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo

(Reuters) - Banks on the payment app Zelle have begun refunding victims of imposter scams to address consumer protection concerns raised by U.S. lawmakers and the federal consumer watchdog, in a major policy change.

The 2,100 financial firms on Zelle, a peer-to-peer network owned by seven banks including JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, began reversing transfers as of June 30 for customers duped into sending money to scammers claiming to be from a government agency, bank or existing service provider, said Early Warning Services (EWS), the banks' company that owns Zelle.