System, Program Product, And Method To Authorize Draw For Retailer Optimization

• US 20090254431A1
• Filed: 04/02/2009
• Published: 10/08/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pathward National Association
• Original Assignee: MetaBank (Meta Financial Group Incorporated)
• Inventors: Sorbe, Trent, Crowe, Andrew B., Galit, Scott H.
• Granted Patent: US 8,150,764 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.340
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• 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: G06Q 30/0234 Rebates after completed purchase
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0236 Incentive or reward received by requiring registration or ID from user
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/03 Credit; Loans; Processing thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

A line of credit optimized for a retailer and attached to a customer account at a financial institution is established for a customer of the retailer. A financial institution computer determines whether to advance funds through the line of credit for a transaction, then advances funds in one or more preselected loan increments to the customer account, up to a total available line of credit for the customer. The financial institution computer decrements the total available line of credit by the amount provided for the customer transaction and by a predetermined customer fee for each of the loan increments. The computer determines a value of a retailer fee to be paid by the retailer, involving a predetermined amount for each of the loan increments. The customer fee amount can be zero or discounted for customer transactions with the retailer. The retailer fee can be a rebate to the customer.

Claims

1. A system to advance funds to a customer of a retailer, the system comprising:

a computer associated with a financial institution defining a financial institution computer, the financial institution computer having memory and being associated with the electronic communications network; and

computer program product associated with the financial institution computer, stored on a tangible computer memory media, and operable on a computer, the computer program product comprising a set of instructions that, when executed by the computer, cause the computer to perform the operations of;

establishing a line of credit attached to a customer account at the financial institution for a customer of a retailer responsive to customer underwriting data and predetermined qualification parameters to thereby convert customer underwriting data into line of credit data, the line of credit being optimized for the retailer,

determining whether to advance funds from the line of credit for a customer transaction,

advancing funds in one or more preselected loan increments to the customer account to thereby convert line of credit data into a value associated with the customer account to thereby fund the customer transaction, a cumulative amount of the one or more preselected loan increments being less than a total available line of credit for the customer having an established line of credit with the financial institution,

decrementing the total available line of credit by the cumulative amount of the one or more preselected loan increments provided for the customer transaction and by a predetermined customer fee amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments, and

determining a value of a retailer fee to be paid by the retailer, the retailer fee having a predetermined amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments.

2. A system of claim 1, wherein the predetermined customer fee amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments for a customer transaction is a first amount if the customer transaction is associated with the retailer and is a second amount if the customer transaction is not associated with the retailer, the second amount being greater than the first amount, to thereby define a fee discount by the retailer.

3. A system of claim 1, wherein the operations further include incrementing the total available line of credit by the value of the retailer fee to thereby define a rebate to the customer.

4. A system of claim 3, wherein the operation of determining whether to advance funds through the line of credit for a customer transaction is responsive to a request for a draw in advance of purchase against the line of credit using one or more of the following:

a written correspondence from the customer, a customer selection on a website, a telephone conversation with an interactive voice response unit, a telephone conversation with a customer service representative, and a mobile phone.

5. A system of claim 1, wherein the operation of determining whether to advance funds through the line of credit for a customer transaction occurs within an authorization stream for a proposed transaction and includes receiving proposed transaction data by the financial institution computer from a card reader device associated with a point of sale terminal responsive to the card reader device reading data from a card associated with the customer account and modifying the data to include point of sale data.

6. A system of claim 1, wherein the customer account is a prepaid card account, and wherein the operation of advancing funds in one or more preselected loan increments for the customer transaction includes loading a prepaid card with one or more preselected loan increments of funds for the customer transaction to thereby convert line of credit data into a value associated with a prepaid card so that the value associated with the prepaid card is exchanged for goods.

7. A system of claim 1, wherein the operations further include displaying an account activity statement, including a purchase, on a display device to thereby provide a visual representation of a value associated with a line of credit being exchanged for goods.

8. A program product stored in one or more tangible computer readable media and readable by a computer so that the program product operates to perform the following set of instructions when read by the computer:

establishing a line of credit attached to a customer account at a financial institution for a customer of a retailer responsive to customer underwriting data and predetermined qualification parameters to thereby convert customer underwriting data into line of credit data, the line of credit being optimized for the retailer;

determining whether to advance funds through the line of credit for a customer transaction;

advancing funds in one or more preselected loan increments to the customer account to thereby convert line of credit data into a value associated with the customer account to thereby fund the customer transaction, a cumulative amount of the one or more preselected loan increments being less than a total available line of credit for the customer having an established line of credit with the financial institution;

decrementing the total available line of credit by the cumulative amount of the one or more preselected loan increments provided for the customer transaction and by a predetermined customer fee amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments; and

determining a value of a retailer fee to be paid by the retailer, the retailer fee having a predetermined amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments.

9. A program product of claim 8, wherein the predetermined customer fee amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments for a customer transaction is a first amount if the customer transaction is associated with the retailer and is a second amount if the customer transaction is not associated with the retailer, the second amount being greater than the first amount, to thereby define a fee discount by the retailer.

10. A program product of claim 8, wherein the operation of determining whether to advance funds through the line of credit for a customer transaction occurs within an authorization stream for a proposed transaction and includes receiving proposed transaction data by the financial institution computer from a card reader device associated with a point of sale terminal responsive to the card reader device reading data from a card associated with the customer account and modifying the data to include point of sale data.

11. A program product of claim 8, wherein a predetermined portion of the total available line of credit is reserved for customer transactions associated with the retailer.

12. A program product of claim 8, wherein the financial institution comprises a first financial institution, wherein the program product is further associated with a demand deposit account of a second financial institution, and wherein the program product further operates to perform the following instruction:

decrementing a designated direct deposit from the demand deposit account at the second financial institution for repayment of at least portions of the line of credit.

13. A program product of claim 8, wherein the customer account is a prepaid card account, and wherein the operation of advancing funds in one or more preselected loan increments to the customer account includes loading a prepaid card with one or more preselected loan increments of funds for the customer transaction to thereby convert line of credit data into a value associated with a prepaid card so that the value associated with the prepaid card is exchanged for goods.

14. A program product of claim 8, wherein the operations further include displaying an account activity statement, including a purchase, on a display device to thereby provide a visual representation of a value associated with a line of credit being exchanged for goods.

15. A computer-implemented method of advancing funds to a customer of a retailer, the method comprising:

establishing a line of credit attached to a customer account at a financial institution for a customer of a retailer responsive to customer underwriting data and predetermined qualification parameters to thereby convert customer underwriting data into line of credit data, the line of credit being optimized for the retailer;

determining whether to advance funds through the line of credit for a customer transaction;

advancing funds in one or more preselected loan increments to the customer account to thereby convert line of credit data into a value associated with the customer account to thereby fund the customer transaction, a cumulative amount of the one or more preselected loan increments being less than a total available line of credit for the customer having an established line of credit with the financial institution;

decrementing the total available line of credit by the cumulative amount of the one or more preselected loan increments provided for the customer transaction and by a predetermined customer fee amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments; and

determining a value of a retailer fee to be paid by the retailer, the retailer fee having a predetermined amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments.

16. A computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the predetermined customer fee amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments is zero so that the only fees are paid by the retailer, and the customer has free access to credit at the retailer.

17. A computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the predetermined customer fee amount for each of the one or more preselected loan increments for a customer transaction is a first amount if the customer transaction is associated with the retailer and is a second amount if the customer transaction is not associated with the retailer, the second amount being greater than the first amount, to thereby define a fee discount by the retailer.

18. A computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the step of determining whether to advance funds through the line of credit for a customer transaction occurs within an authorization stream for a proposed transaction and includes receiving proposed transaction data by the financial institution computer from a card reader device associated with a point of sale terminal responsive to the card reader device reading data from a card associated with the customer account and modifying the data to include point of sale data.

19. A computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the customer account is a prepaid card account, and wherein the step of advancing finds in one or more preselected loan increments to the customer account includes loading a prepaid card with one or more preselected loan increments of funds for the customer transaction to thereby convert line of credit data into a value associated with a prepaid card so that the value associated with the prepaid card is exchanged for goods.

20. A computer-implemented method of claim 15, further comprising:

displaying an account activity statement, including a purchase, on a display device to thereby provide a visual representation of a value associated with a line of credit being exchanged for goods.