Peer-to-peer payment service Zelle is reportedly preparing to make its first move beyond the United States, with plans to launch in India later this year.
Although India’s widely used Unified Payments Interface (UPI) system dominates domestic payments, there may still be a sizable opportunity for Zelle. India is the world’s largest recipient of remittances, and roughly a third of all remittances sent there each year come from the U.S.
Early Warning Services, the consortium of banks that owns and operates the Zelle network, said this makes India a natural starting point for its international expansion.
“Zelle wants a slice of the international transfer market, and given the remittance volume to India, it seems like a good expansion point,” said Ben Danner, Senior Analyst of Debit at Javelin Strategy & Research. “They will be taking on a crowded market of fintech competitors with the promise of an integrated, bank-native solution for sending money instantly across borders.”
Backed by a Stablecoin
Zelle also said it plans to explore issuing its own dollar-backed stablecoin, potentially to be known as ZelleUSD, a move that has been anticipated since last year. Competitors like PayPal have already introduced their own stablecoins, enabling faster cross-border transfers.
Early Warning Services expects to expand Zelle into additional international markets over time. The token could eventually serve as a backbone for global payment services.
“It’s not strictly necessary, but the stablecoin addresses that faster, cheaper around the clock money movement, and avoids the restraints of typical correspondent banking hours, said Joel Hugentobler, Cryptocurrency Analyst at Javelin. “That’s my guess what their angle is.”
Competing with UPI
In nine years, Zelle has become a leading way for U.S. consumers to send money directly from their bank accounts. Consumers and small businesses sent more than $1.2 trillion through the service in 2025.
The challenge of launching in India is, again, UPI. The network accounted for 81% of global real-time payments last year, making it one of the most widely used instant payment systems in the world. However, its ubiquity could also make integration and user adoption easier for new entrants like Zelle.
“UPI has readily made real-time payments common in India,” Danner said. “There are several transfer services like PayPal’s Xoom, Remitly, and TransferWise that already enable remittance transfers quickly. The appetite is definitely there.”
