System and method for message communication

• US 20040064420A1
• Filed: 09/17/2003
• Published: 04/01/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: UBS Ag
• Original Assignee: UBS Ag
• Inventors: Buist, Walter D.
• Application Number:
  US10/666,817
• Publication Number:
  US 20040064420A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/64
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0428 wherein the data content is protected, e.g. by encrypting or encapsulating the payload
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

A preferred embodiment of the present invention enables a sender of a financial message adhering to a field delimited communication protocol to use an entry in a specified field of the protocol to communicate a coded message having a meaning outside the publicly-known meaning within the protocol. In an exemplary embodiment, a sender of a Financial Information Exchange (FIX) message uses the order quantity field (“tag 38”) to communicate coded instructions to the message receiver on how to interpret the contents of the order message.

A preferred embodiment allows a party to define how values placed in the specified field will be interpreted. The exact meaning given to the coded number(s) may be different for each sender/receiver pair, or the same or similar codes may be used between a single sender and a plurality of receivers, as well as between any number of sender/receiver pairs.

Claims

1. A method for securely communicating financial information, comprising:

receiving over an electronic computer network a coded message comprising an entry in a specified field of a field delimited communication protocol; and

interpreting said coded message to have a meaning different from a publicly-known meaning for entries in said specified field.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the field delimited communication protocol is the Financial Information Exchange (FIX) Protocol, or a protocol derived therefrom.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the specified field is an order value field.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the specified field comprises a FIX tag 38 entry.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the encoded message corresponds to a number of shares.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the encoded message corresponds to an Indication of Interest (IOI) for a number of shares.

7. A method for securely communicating financial information, comprising:

encoding a message comprising an entry in a specified field of a field delimited communication protocol, wherein said encoded message is intended to have a meaning different from a publicly-known meaning for entries in said specified field; and

transmitting said encoded message over an electronic computer network.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the field delimited communication protocol is the Financial Information Exchange (FIX) Protocol, or a protocol derived therefrom.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the specified field is an order value field.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the specified field comprises a FIX tag 38 entry.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the encoded message corresponds to a number of shares.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the encoded message corresponds to an Indication of Interest (IOI) for a number of shares.

13. A method for securely communicating financial information, comprising:

receiving over a first electronic computer network a first message, said message comprising a first entry in a specified field of a field delimited communication protocol;

transmitting over a second electronic computer network, a second message, said second message comprising a second entry in said specified field of said field delimited communication protocol; and

at least one of said first and second messages being encoded, wherein each encoded message is intended to have a meaning different from a publicly-known meaning for entries in said specified field;

wherein, said first and second electronic network, said first and second entries, and said first and second messages are not necessarily distinct.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the field delimited communication protocol is the Financial Information Exchange (FIX) Protocol, or a protocol derived therefrom.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the specified field is an order value field.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the encoded message corresponds to a number of shares.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the encoded message corresponds to an Indication of Interest (IOI) for a number of shares.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein said first and second messages are both encoded, further comprising:

determining whether corresponding entries in said specified field of said messages match; and

if the match is successful, transmitting a notification to one or more broker/dealers.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the transmitted notification is not encoded.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein said first message is encoded, and wherein said transmitting is to a plurality of receivers, further comprising:

receiving from a receiver a reply to said second message; and

determining whether corresponding entries in the specified field of the first message and said reply match.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein if the match is successful, transmitting a notification to one or more broker dealers.

22. An apparatus for securely communicating financial information, comprising:

a receiver for receiving over an electronic computer network a coded message comprising an entry in a specified field of a field delimited communication protocol; and

an interpreter for interpreting said coded message to have a meaning different from a publicly-known meaning for entries in said specified field.

23. An apparatus for securely communicating financial information, comprising:

an encoder for encoding a message comprising an entry in a specified field of a field delimited communication protocol, wherein said encoded message is intended to have a meaning different from a publicly-known meaning for entries in said specified field; and

a transmitter for transmitting said encoded message over an electronic computer network.

24. An apparatus for securely communicating financial information, comprising:

a receiver for receiving over a first electronic computer network a first message, said message comprising a first entry in a specified field of a field delimited communication protocol;

a transmitter for transmitting over a second electronic computer network, a second message, said second message comprising a second entry in said specified field of said field delimited communication protocol; and

at least one of said first and second messages being encoded, wherein each encoded message is intended to have a meaning different from a publicly-known meaning for entries in said specified field;

wherein, said first and second electronic network, said first and second entries, and said first and second messages are not necessarily distinct.