Merchant performed banking-type transactions

• US 10,380,564 B1
• Filed: 12/05/2013
• Issued: 08/13/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Square Inc (Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.))
• Inventors: Wilson, Mathew, Neighman, Daniel Phillip
• Primary Examiner(s): Ebersman, Bruce I
• Application Number:
  US14/098,336
• Time in Patent Office: 2,077 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/0855 involving a third party
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/108 Remote banking, e.g. home banking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/1085 involving automatic teller machines [ATMs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/202 Interconnection or interaction of plural electronic cash registers [ECR] or to host computer, e.g. network details, transfer of information from host to ECR or from ECR to ECR
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/204 comprising interface for record bearing medium or carrier for electronic funds transfer or payment credit
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 19/211 Software architecture within ATMs or in relation to the ATM network

Abstract

Various embodiments are related to apparatuses and methods for enabling a merchant to perform banking-type transactions for a customer. A merchant can use, for example, a sales system configured to be used by the merchant to sell goods to perform a banking-type transaction for a customer. The sales system can send information related to the banking-type transaction to, for example, a buyer/seller platform. When the banking-type transaction is a deposit, the merchant can receive funds for the deposit from the customer. The platform can credit the customer'"'"'s financial account for the deposit amount by diverting payment card funds, received by the merchant for the sale of goods and processed by the platform, to the customer'"'"'s financial account. When the banking-type transaction is a withdrawal, the platform can debit the customer'"'"'s financial account and credit the debited funds to the merchant'"'"'s financial account.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, by a remote transactions server implemented on a computer system, from each of a plurality of point-of-sale (POS) systems, information identifying a respective merchant financial account of a plurality of merchants engaged in financial transactions with a plurality of customers, the financial transactions including electronic payments made by a subset of the plurality of customers by use of the POS systems, the electronic payments being associated with sales of goods or services to the plurality of customers, wherein the remote transactions server processes the electronic payments by obtaining funds from accounts associated with the plurality of customers and depositing a portion of the funds in one or more respective merchant financial accounts;

in response to the electronic payments, the remote transactions server automatically obtaining funds from accounts associated with the subset of the plurality of customers, and depositing a portion of the funds in respective merchant financial accounts of the merchants;

receiving, by the remote transactions server, from a POS system of a first merchant, code data electronically obtained from a mobile device associated with a customer that enables the remote transactions server to establish an identity of the customer in association with a banking-type transaction of the customer transacted by use of the POS system;

establishing the identity of the customer, by the remote transactions server, based on the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device and without any other physical form of identification for the customer being provided to the first merchant in association with the banking-type transaction;

creating, by the remote transactions server, a customer financial account at the remote transactions server based on the established identity of the customer, wherein the creation of the customer financial account includes writing data to a mapping database that automatically and remotely links the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device with the customer financial account, wherein the creating is performed, at a storage device accessible by the computer system;

receiving, by the remote transactions server, from the POS system, transaction information associated with the banking-type transaction, the transaction information including a type and an amount of the banking-type transaction, the banking-type transaction made at the first merchant;

in response to receiving the transaction information, automatically accessing, by the remote transactions server, the mapping database to obtain account information for the customer financial account;

adjusting, by the remote transactions server, a monetary balance of the customer financial account at the remote transactions server based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction;

determining, by the remote transactions server, a merchant financial account associated with the first merchant; and

adjusting, by the remote transactions server, the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the type of the banking-type transaction is a deposit, wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds includes decreasing the portion of the funds by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit, and wherein the adjusting the monetary balance of the customer financial account includes increasing the monetary balance by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the customer is a second merchant of the plurality of merchants, wherein the customer financial account is a selected merchant financial account of the second merchant, and wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account is based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction.

4. The method of claim 3,

wherein the banking-type transaction is a deposit,

wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account includes decreasing the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit, and

wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account includes increasing the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the computer system is controlled by an entity other than a bank or a credit union.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein funds of the merchant financial account and funds of the customer financial account are held in a fund holding account of a fund holding entity that is one of a bank or a credit union,

wherein the fund holding account is holding funds of a plurality of financial accounts, and

wherein each of the plurality of financial accounts is associated with one of a customer of the plurality of customers or a merchant of the plurality of merchants.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an identification code; and

verifying that the identification code is valid for the customer financial account.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile device is any one of a smart phone, a tablet, a portable media device, a wearable device, or a portable computer.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the POS system is a sales system configured to be used by the first merchant to sell goods or services.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

as part of an identity verification process, sending, by the remote transactions server and to the POS system, a photo of a person associated with the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the remote transactions server, from a second POS system of a second merchant, second transaction information associated with a second banking-type transaction including a type and an amount of the second banking-type transaction, the second banking-type transaction made by the customer by use of the second POS system;

in response to receiving the second transaction information, automatically determining, by the remote transactions server, the customer financial account associated with the customer;

adjusting, by the remote transactions server, the monetary balance of the customer financial account based on the type and the amount of the second banking-type transaction;

determining, by the remote transactions server, a second merchant financial account associated with the second merchant; and

adjusting, by the remote transactions server, the portion of the funds that are deposited in the second merchant financial account based on the type and the amount of the second banking-type transaction.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the physical form of identification is any of a magnetic stripe card, a smart card, a proximity card, a re-programmable magnetic stripe card, a card containing a quick response (QR) code, a card containing a bar code, a government issued identification card, or a proxy card.

13. One or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media embodying software that is operable when executed to, at a remote transactions server:

receive, from each of a plurality of point-of-sale (POS) systems, information identifying a respective merchant financial account of a plurality of merchants engaged in financial transactions with a plurality of customers, the financial transactions including electronic payments made by a subset of the plurality of customers by use of the POS systems, the electronic payments being associated with sales of goods or services to the plurality of customers, wherein the remote transactions server processes the electronic payments by obtaining funds from accounts associated with the plurality of customers and depositing a portion of the funds in one or more respective merchant financial accounts;

in response to the electronic payments, automatically obtain funds from accounts associated with the subset of the plurality of customers, and depositing a portion of the funds in respective merchant financial accounts of the merchants;

receive, from a POS system of a first merchant, code data electronically obtained from a mobile device associated with a customer that enables the remote transactions server to establish an identity of the customer in association with a banking-type transaction of the customer transacted by use of the POS system;

establish the identity of the customer based on the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device and without any other physical form of identification for the customer being provided to the first merchant in association with the banking-type transaction;

create a customer financial account at the remote transactions server based on the established identity of the customer, wherein the creation of the customer financial account includes writing data to a mapping database that automatically and remotely links the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device with the customer financial account, wherein the creating is performed, at a storage device accessible by the computer system;

receive transaction information associated with the banking-type transaction, the transaction information including a type and an amount of the banking-type transaction, the banking-type transaction made at the first merchant;

in response to receiving the transaction information, automatically access the mapping database to obtain account information for the customer financial account;

adjust a monetary balance of the customer financial account at the remote transactions server based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction;

determine a merchant financial account associated with the first merchant; and

adjust the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction.

14. The media of claim 13, wherein the type of the banking-type transaction is a deposit, wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds includes decreasing the portion of the funds by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit, and wherein the adjusting the monetary balance of the customer financial account includes increasing the monetary balance by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit.

15. The media of claim 13, wherein the customer is a second merchant of the plurality of merchants, wherein the customer financial account is a selected merchant financial account of the second merchant, and wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account is based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction.

16. The media of claim 15,

wherein the banking-type transaction is a deposit,

wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account includes decreasing the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit, and

wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account includes increasing the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit.

17. The media of claim 13, wherein the computer system is controlled by an entity other than a bank or a credit union.

18. The media of claim 13, wherein funds of the merchant financial account and funds of the customer financial account are held in a fund holding account of a fund holding entity that is one of a bank or a credit union,

wherein the fund holding account is holding funds of a plurality of financial accounts, and

wherein each of the plurality of financial accounts is associated with one of a customer of the plurality of customers or a merchant of the plurality of merchants.

19. The media of claim 13, wherein the software is further operable when executed to:

receive an identification code; and

verify that the identification code is valid for the customer financial account.

20. The media of claim 13, wherein the mobile device is any one of a smart phone, a tablet, a portable media device, a wearable device, or a portable computer.

21. The media of claim 13, wherein the POS system is a sales system configured to be used by the first merchant to sell goods or services.

22. The media of claim 13, wherein the software is further operable when executed to:

as part of an identity verification process, send to the POS server a photo of a person associated with the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device.

23. The media of claim 13, wherein the software is further operable when executed to:

receive from a second POS system of a second merchant, second transaction information associated with a second banking-type transaction including a type and an amount of the second banking-type transaction, the second banking-type transaction made by the customer by use of the second POS system;

in response to receiving the second transaction information, automatically determine the customer financial account associated with the customer;

adjust the monetary balance of the customer financial account based on the type and the amount of the second banking-type transaction;

determine a second merchant financial account associated with the second merchant; and

adjust the portion of the funds that are deposited in the second merchant financial account based on the type and the amount of the second banking-type transaction.

24. The media of claim 13, wherein the physical form of identification is any of a magnetic stripe card, a smart card, a proximity card, a re-programmable magnetic stripe card, a card containing a quick response (QR) code, a card containing a bar code, a government issued identification card, or a proxy card.

25. A system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more computer-readable non-transitory storage media coupled to one or more of the processors and comprising instructions operable when executed by one or more of the processors to cause the system to;

receive, from each of a plurality of point-of-sale (POS) systems, information identifying a respective merchant financial account of a plurality of merchants engaged in financial transactions with a plurality of customers, the financial transactions including electronic payments made by a subset of the plurality of customers by use of the POS systems, the electronic payments being associated with sales of goods or services to the plurality of customers, wherein the remote transactions server processes the electronic payments by obtaining funds from accounts associated with the plurality of customers and depositing a portion of the funds in one or more respective merchant financial accounts;

in response to the electronic payments, automatically obtain funds from accounts associated with the subset of the plurality of customers, and depositing a portion of the funds in respective merchant financial accounts of the merchants;

receive, from a POS system of a first merchant, code data electronically obtained from a mobile device associated with a customer that enables the remote transactions server to establish an identity of the customer in association with a banking-type transaction of the customer transacted by use of the POS system;

establish the identity of the customer based on the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device and without any other physical form of identification for the customer being provided to the first merchant in association with the banking-type transaction;

create a customer financial account at the remote transactions server based on the established identity of the customer, wherein the creation of the customer financial account includes writing data to a mapping database that automatically and remotely links the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device with the customer financial account, wherein the creating is performed, at a storage device accessible by the computer system;

receive transaction information associated with the banking-type transaction, the transaction information including a type and an amount of the banking-type transaction, the banking-type transaction made at the first merchant;

in response to receiving the transaction information, automatically access the mapping database to obtain account information for the customer financial account;

adjust a monetary balance of the customer financial account at the remote transactions server based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction;

determine a merchant financial account associated with the first merchant; and

adjust the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein the type of the banking-type transaction is a deposit, wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds includes decreasing the portion of the funds by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit, and wherein the adjusting the monetary balance of the customer financial account includes increasing the monetary balance by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit.

27. The system of claim 25, wherein the customer is a second merchant of the plurality of merchants, wherein the customer financial account is a selected merchant financial account of the second merchant, and wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account is based on the type and the amount of the banking-type transaction.

28. The system of claim 27,

wherein the banking-type transaction is a deposit,

wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account includes decreasing the portion of the funds that are deposited in the merchant financial account by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit, and

wherein the adjusting the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account includes increasing the portion of the funds that are deposited in the selected merchant financial account by an amount corresponding to the amount of the deposit.

29. The system of claim 25, wherein the computer system is controlled by an entity other than a bank or a credit union.

30. The system of claim 25, wherein funds of the merchant financial account and funds of the customer financial account are held in a fund holding account of a fund holding entity that is one of a bank or a credit union,

wherein the fund holding account is holding funds of a plurality of financial accounts, and

wherein each of the plurality of financial accounts is associated with one of a customer of the plurality of customers or a merchant of the plurality of merchants.

31. The system of claim 25, wherein the software is further operable when executed to:

receive an identification code; and

verify that the identification code is valid for the customer financial account.

32. The system of claim 25, wherein the mobile device is any one of a smart phone, a tablet, a portable media device, a wearable device, or a portable computer.

33. The system of claim 25, wherein the POS system is a sales system configured to be used by the first merchant to sell goods or services.

34. The system of claim 25, wherein the software is further operable when executed to:

as part of an identity verification process, send to the POS server a photo of a person associated with the code data electronically obtained from the mobile device.

35. The system of claim 25, wherein the software is further operable when executed to:

receive from a second POS system of a second merchant, second transaction information associated with a second banking-type transaction including a type and an amount of the second banking-type transaction, the second banking-type transaction made by the customer by use of the second POS system;

in response to receiving the second transaction information, automatically determine the customer financial account associated with the customer;

adjust the monetary balance of the customer financial account based on the type and the amount of the second banking-type transaction;

determine a second merchant financial account associated with the second merchant; and

adjust the portion of the funds that are deposited in the second merchant financial account based on the type and the amount of the second banking-type transaction.

36. The system of claim 25, wherein the physical form of identification is any of a magnetic stripe card, a smart card, a proximity card, a re-programmable magnetic stripe card, a card containing a quick response (QR) code, a card containing a bar code, a government issued identification card, or a proxy card.