Our role

Every day, financial institutions process billions of transactions, card payments, returns, customer data changes and generate millions of bank statements. At the same time, people who want to use financial systems for illegal purposes try to bypass security systems or expose other people to financial losses.

Therefore, ZEN, like any other financial institution, is obliged to take all possible steps to ensure that customers' money deposited in their accounts is safe.

At ZEN, we focus on experienced people and effective security systems. We use the best ideas and innovative solutions, all so that you can fully feel ZEN.

But in order for financial institutions to effectively protect our money, they must comply with regulations. Together with regulatory authorities as well as with other financial institutions, a number of rules have been created to be able to function safely in the financial ecosystem.

The financial ecosystem

The financial ecosystem is not only money, transfers and banks. The financial ecosystem is a set of all those who participate in the money exchange process, including: payment institutions, online stores, providers of various types of services, such as streaming services, ATMs, cash deposit machines, payment brokers, payment card issuers, cryptocurrency exchanges, Stock Market and...  every customer, that is, each of us.

An attack or abuse against one element of the financial ecosystem affects other elements. Therefore, several parties may react to such attacks or attempts to exploit the weaknesses of the financial ecosystem. All of this to protect each other, and above all, to effectively protect each client, each person, your data, your money and trust given.

How do we protect you and your money?

It should be remembered that in order to effectively defend against attacks by cybercriminals and fraudsters, financial institutions sometimes have to act preventively. We also introduced rules to protect our customers from abuse, they are included in our Terms of Use.

Therefore, in some cases there is a possibility where, in order to investigate or prevent a situation, we may limit access to accounts or functionalities. Automatic systems verify millions of transactions and customer activities, trying to detect activities that do not comply with established rules, stop suspicious transactions etc.

Security systems act like the human immune system that reacts when something bad happens in the human body. When our organism is not working properly or something threatens us, we do not feel good about it. But then everything goes back to normal.

Why do we limit access to accounts?

At ZEN, we do everything we can to help you get the most out of your account, Zenefits, Extended Warranty or ZEN Care, but sometimes we need to take extra steps.

In our regulations, we have listed types of behavior that expose our clients to various risks, and we have also provided a few examples because we know that no one likes to read terms ;) You can find them in the "Suspension of your ZEN Account" section. As a result of the actions listed in the Terms, we can decide to temporarily or permanently limit access or some features of the app. Exemplary reasons for imposing restrictions may be different e.g.:

- when activity has been detected that indicates the possibility of taking over access to the account by unauthorized persons

- suspicious transactions have been noticed

- currency speculation has been detected (ZEN is not a platform to profit from currency trading)

- accounts are created for the resale of subscription profiles

- when we detect activities that evade the law or expose other entities from the financial ecosystem to losses (such as if gainful activity based on extortion of benefits have been detected)

- breaking the regulations of business partners with whom ZEN cooperates within the financial ecosystem

These are just some of the examples. Remember that if you are not sure whether a given provision may apply to you, you can always contact us at hello@zen.com and our team will provide you with all answers and explanations so that you can safely use your ZEN account.

Payments may be rejected for a various reasons, including most often:

- exceeding the time set for verification (e.g. the time given to us by the intermediary bank)

- insufficient information in the answers provided

- exceeding the level of established risk that the payment involved

- inconsistent sender/recipient data

- unclear reason for the payment

- sending funds to countries flagged by international organizations as sanctioned or high-risk

- other reasons, the details of which we cannot provide but their presence is to protect ZEN customers and their money

Every financial institution, including ZEN, is obliged to conduct risk analyses.

Verifications are routine and can occur at any time.

ZEN Terms of Use is an agreement concluded between you and us. It sets rights and obligations both for you and us in relation to the use of our services. This agreement not only ensures compliance with the regulatory requirements, but also enables you to know what ZEN offers and what the rules of cooperation are.

Violations of the rules of cooperation between partners in the financial system can result in restrictions for ZEN customers. In other words, the actions of one client that are inconsistent with ZEN's Terms of Use may expose other ZEN clients to loss of benefits. This is why we sometimes contact our customers to warn them of the possibility of losing the benefits of their ZEN account.

For more on the consequences of breaking the rules, see our Terms of Use.

If you suspect or already know that you have been a victim of fraud, write to us immediately at hello@zen.com or via chat. We'll make sure your account is safe and advise you on what to do next. Also, it is necessary to report to local law enforcement agencies.

What to do next?

ZEN, like any financial institution, works with law enforcement agencies (e.g. the Police) in many countries to work together to solve various cases. It is the law enforcement agencies that are responsible for searching for criminals and have the tools to do so. As soon as they report to us, we must give them all the necessary information so that they can complete their investigation more quickly.

As ZEN.COM is licensed by the Bank of Lithuania and regulated by the respective EU regulations regarding financial markets and services, we are legally required to comply with the requirements imposed on us, as follows:

- Directive (EU) 2015/849 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2015 "On the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, amending Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and repealing Directive 2005/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Commission Directive 2006/70/EC" with all its later changes and amendments

- the Law on Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing of the Republic of Lithuania

- as well as other national legal regulations

Among other things the above mentioned legal regulations requires us to:

- identify and verify the identity of the customer and in cases where applicable his/hers authorized representatives and ultimate beneficial owners - collect information about the purpose and intended nature of business relationship, including to obtain the documents proving this information

- periodically review and update customer's information about purpose and intended nature of business relationship

- monitor customer's transactions and to obtain its grounds proving documents to ensure that transactions are not related to criminal activity, such as money laundering or terrorist financing

Once again, we wish to emphasize that our inquiries are routine and are required by law. We do not collect any information other than that which is necessary to verify transactions, the identities of our clients and their associations.

Customer relationship monitoring is the responsibility of every financial institution. In short, regulations require us to understand where our clients' money comes from or how our clients generated their wealth.

That's why sometimes we have to ask our clients some questions or ask for documents. Once we decide to write to you, we only ask what is necessary to complete the verification.

International regulations have been prepared, based on different situations, in order to protect customers and payment systems (including the institutions involved) from threats such as money laundering and terrorist financing.

Verifications of the Source of Funds are routine and can occur at any time.

At ZEN, we focus on making sure you don't worry about a thing. Our automatic monitoring systems run 24/7. They verify thousands of payments in real time to keep each of our customers safe. These automatic verifications run in the background, like an anti-virus on your computer.

Sometimes, however, something may be unclear to us and we need to contact for more information. The safety of you and your money is our priority!

Verifications are routine and can occur at any time.

People in exposed public positions (e.g., politicians, judges, local government officials and their families) are so-called PEPs (Politically Exposed Persons). Due to their functions and the decisions they make, they are exposed to risks, such as manipulation or attempts to pay bribes. Therefore, regulatory rules dictate that every financial institution must make sure whether its clients are PEPs or not.

If you have received such a question from us, and you are not a PEP, or do not have a PEP in your closest family, it is most likely that your name is very similar to someone who holds such a position and it is our duty to check this.

Politically Exposed Persons and their families can apply for a ZEN account but must meet additional requirements.

ZEN is a financial institution, and one of the primary responsibilities of financial institutions is to determine who their customers are. This happens not only at the time of account opening, but also periodically during the course of an already established relationship. Therefore, from time to time, our customers may be asked to answer a few questions or resubmit identity documents.

Please note that the verification process is powered by the external service provider - iDenfy.

Verifications are routine and may occur at random times.

Verification tips

- make sure that the document you have matches the selected document type

- check that the data on the registration form matches the data on the document

- verify that the document isn’t damaged, invalid, or expired

- fit the document into the frame so that all four corners are visible

- do not scan the document and your photos in any other way (e.g., from a computer screen)

- ensure the photo of the document is of good quality (the photo should not be blurry or out of focus)

- place your face right in the indicated frame to scan it correctly

- do not cover any part of the document or your face