Electronic delivery system and method for integrating global financial services

• US 6,058,378 A
• Filed: 06/07/1995
• Issued: 05/02/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Citibank (South Dakota) NA (Citigroup Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Citibank (South Dakota) NA (Citigroup Incorporated)
• Inventors: D'Onofrio, John, Clark, Barry Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): Poinvil, Frantzy
• Application Number:
  US08/473,976
• Time in Patent Office: 1,791 Days
• Field of Search: 395/237, 705/37, 705/10, 705/17, 705/18, 705/39
• US Class Current: 705/37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/108 Remote banking, e.g. home banking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

A method for integrating a plurality of financial services provided at different geographical locations and in different time zones, and electronic delivering such services directly to a customer facility at any time requested by the customer. Customers connect to the system whenever desired to access each of the services, and messages are stored and routed between the customers and each of the service providers at the respective times when the customers'"'"' facilities and the service providers'"'"' facilities are operative. The system can interface with a customer'"'"'s stand-alone personal computer, local area network, and/or mainframe computer. A variety of security functions provide different levels of access to the services for different customers.

Claims

1. A method for delivering a plurality of financial services to a customer, comprising:

providing securities, cash management and trade financing services at a plurality of on-line transaction processor facilities;

electronically connecting a customer facility computer to the on-line transaction processor facilitates;

creating a transaction instruction message related to any of the securities, cash management and trade financing services to send to one of the plurality of on-line transaction processor facilities;

sending the transaction instruction message from the customer facility to a global interface device;

storing and queuing the transaction instruction message in the global interface device;

determining whether or not the transaction instruction message is associated with an appropriate entitlement;

determining to which on-line transaction processor facility to route the transaction instruction message based on information contained in the message;

determining if the proper on-line transaction processor facility is available;

forwarding the transaction instruction message to the proper on-line transaction processor facility from the global interface device when the processor facility becomes available and if the transaction instruction message is associated with the appropriate entitlement; and

receiving at the global interface device a status or event message from the proper on-line transaction processor facility, storing the status or event message at said global interface device, and routing the status or event message to the customer facility, wherein the status or event message may be retrieved at the customer facility in substantially real time from the proper on-line transaction processor via said global interface device, and can also be retrieved when the proper on-line transaction processor is not operational.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the retrieving of the status or event message comprises:

creating and sending a message retrieval request for the status or event message that meets a selected criteria;

collecting the status or event message from the global interface device that meets the selected criteria; and

forwarding the collected status or event message from the global interface device to the customer facility.

3. A method of conducting global financial activities directly from customer facilities, comprising;

receiving transaction instruction messages at input terminals located at individual customers'"'"' facilities to request either a securities, cash management or trade financing transaction from one of a group of different on-line transaction processor facilitates located at places geographically separated from one of the customers'"'"' facilities and in a different time zone from the one customer facility;

routing said transaction instruction messages to a global interface device;

recognizing, storing, and queuing said transaction instruction messages as well as determining if said transaction instruction messages are associated with appropriate entitlements at said global interface device;

routing said transaction instruction messages to the one on-line transaction processor facility at a proper time and if associated with the appropriate entitlements to accomplish the requested transaction;

receiving at the global interface device a status or event message from the one on-line transaction processor facility, storing the status or event message at said global interface device, and routing the status or event message to the one customer facility, wherein the status or event message may be retrieved at the customer facility in substantially real time from the one on-line transaction processors via said global interface device, and can also be retrieved when the one on-line transaction processor is not operational.

4. A global financial process, comprising:

receiving financial transaction instruction messages at computers located at individual customers'"'"' facilities to request either a securities, cash management or trade financing transaction from one of a group of different on-line transaction processor facilities located at places geographically separated from a customer and in different time zones from the customer;

routing said transaction instruction messages to a global interface device;

receiving the transaction instruction messages at the global interface device;

screening the received transaction instruction messages for security at said global interface device and either authorizing the transaction instruction messages or terminating the transaction, based on compliance with designated security criteria;

recognizing, storing, and queuing said authorized transaction instruction messages at said global interface device;

routing said authorized transaction instruction messages to the one on-line transaction processor facility at a proper time to accomplish the requested transaction; and

receiving at the global interface device a status or event message from the one on-line transaction processor facility, storing and queuing the status or event message at the global interface device, and routing the status or event message to the appropriate customer facility, wherein status or event message may be retrieved at the customer facility in substantially real time from the one on-line transaction processor via the global interface device, and may also be retrieved when the one on-line transaction processor is not operational.

5. The global financial process of claim 4, wherein the retrieving of the status or event message comprises:

determining if the status or event message relates to a demand transaction; and

routing the status or event message that relates to the demand transaction immediately to the customer facility.

6. The global financial process of claim 4, wherein the retrieving of the status or event message further comprises:

determining if the status or event message relates to a demand transaction; and

routing the status or event message that does not relate to the demand transaction to the customer facility only upon receiving a message retrieval request from the customer facility.

7. A method for electronically providing financial services from at least one financial service provider, each having an on line transaction processor (OLTP), to a customer having access to at least one signal processing center, each such center having a signal processing apparatus and an associated customer database memory, the method comprising:

using a message-based communication protocol having structured messages to be exchanged between any signal processing apparatus and any OLTP in providing at least one securities, cash management or trade financing transaction between the customer and the service provider, said structured messages including transaction instruction messages used in composing customer originated communications and status or event messages used in composing service provider originated communications;

requiring all exchanged messages to be communicated through a global interface device (GID) communications gateway;

storing all exchanged messages in said GID;

verifying the authenticity and that conditions of entitlement, if any, have been met of each exchanged message under selected certification standards;

forwarding each verified transaction instruction message to a selected OLTP in a prioritized manner; and

retaining each verified status or event message for forwarding to a selected signal processing apparatus upon customer request.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising providing a first menu listing a variety of financial services including securities cash management and trade financing on a display screen, and receiving data indicative of a selection of one of the variety of financial services from the first menu.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising providing a second menu in response to the selection of one of the variety of financial services from the first menu, and inputting data into the second menu for creating the transaction instruction messages.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising receiving a valid user identification and password before providing the first menu.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein each transaction instruction message comprises a header portion and a business portion, where the header portion contains a series of defined data elements that identify at least a message type, a customer, an account and a date.

12. The method of claim 7, further comprising obtaining data from at least one OLTP, and manipulating the data into a financial report.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein the at least one signal processing center includes a plurality of workstations arranged in a local area network.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein the at least one signal processing center includes a computer.

15. The method of claim 7, wherein the at least one signal processing center includes a stand alone workstation.

16. The method of claim 7 wherein the transaction instruction messages and the status or event messages each have a header portion and a main body message text portion.

17. A method for electronically executing financial transactions that include securities, cash management and trade financing transactions between a financial service provider having an on line transaction processor (OLTP) and a customer having a signal processing apparatus and an associated customer database memory, the method comprising:

using a message-based communication protocol having a plurality of structured messages to be used in an exchanged communication between the customer signal processing apparatus and the OLTP in executing at least one securities, cash management or trade financing transaction between the customer and the service provider, said plurality of structured messages comprising transaction instruction messages used by the customer signal processing apparatus in composing customer originated communications and status and event messages used by the OLTP in composing service provider originated communications; and

using a global interface device (GID) as a signal communication gateway between the customer signal processing apparatus and the OLTP, said GID including a GID database memory for storing each said exchanged message between the customer signal processing apparatus and the OLTP, said GID further including a signal processor having a processor signal memory for storing program signals, including program signals for commanding said signal processor in performing the sub-methods of;

receiving each exchanged message between the customer signal processing apparatus and the OLTP, and storing each received message in said GID database memory;

confirming the structured format of each said stored received message;

determining if an entitlement is associated with each of the received messages; and

transmitting each said confirmed message to the exchanged message addressee if there is an associated entitlement and conditions of the entitlement have been met.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the transaction instruction messages and the status or event messages each have a header portion and a main body message text portion.