Author: Shannon Hannes
Zelle is a peer-to-peer (P2P) payment network that allows you to make payments to relatives and friends faster. It can also aid in the streamlining of commercial transactions.
Users can send money to friends and family and pay for goods and services by entering the recipient’s email or phone number.
This article will go over some of Zelle’s most recent features and what you can expect from them.
Privacy Policy Update
Zelle introduces a new feature to protect its user’s privacy. This privacy policy update is Zelle’s way of wanting users to be in control of the personal information they share and how it is used.
The ‘personal information’ includes but is not limited to email address, bank account information, first and last name, home address, and IP address.
Zelle also improves its deletion policy. The new policy allow users to delete their data from Zelle’s servers anytime. It also improved its data retention policy to hold users’ information for a limited period.
Buy Crypto Tokens
Zelle recently added a crypto feature to its apps, allowing users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
Zelle is the first company of its kind to provide large-scale crypto purchases. Users can also use this functionality to buy and hold fractional shares of cryptocurrencies as a form of micro-investment.
Here’s how to use Zelle to acquire Bitcoin:
- Choose a cryptocurrency exchange that accepts Zelle Pay, such as Paxful.
- Verify your identity on the trading platform.
- Determine how much Bitcoin you wish to purchase.
- In your exchange account dashboard, look for the option to add ‘Zelle Pay’ as a payment method. You’ll be prompted to sign in to your Zelle account, input the amount to be transferred, and tap the next button to finish the transaction.
- Configure your order
- After you’ve configured your order, fill out the form and complete the transaction to purchase Bitcoin.
Tax Update
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released a law that required payment platforms like Zelle to report payments for goods and services worth more than $600. This law means that users with business profiles on these payment platforms are required to fill out a form (Form 1099-K – used to report credit and debit transactions, and third-party payment networks). However, Zelle doesn’t report transactions made on its network to the IRS. This is because the law requiring payment platforms to report income doesn’t apply to Zelle. On the other hand, Zelle advises users to report taxable payments they receive on its network.
Key Takeaways
Zelle enables users to send and receive money without incurring transaction fees on the Zelle network. Its data deletion and retention rules continue strengthening its privacy policy to give users complete control over how Zelle utilizes their data. Users can now purchase Bitcoin from a supported trading platform using Zelle. Also, if you use Zelle to collect payments for your goods and services, you won’t get a Form 1099-K because the law requiring payment platforms to record payments over $600 does not apply to Zelle.
