Zelle was sued on Wednesday by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who said the electronic payment platform's refusal to adopt critical safety features enabled fraudsters to steal more than $1 billion from consumers.

New York's attorney general sues the payment app's parent company after the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau dropped its own case following major budget cuts.

The lawsuit alleges that Early Warning Services, Zelle's parent, failed to implement safeguards, enabling fraudsters to steal more than $1 billion.