Money-transfer techniques

• US 7,720,754 B1
• Filed: 08/09/2000
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Uniteller Financial Services, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Uniteller Financial Services, Inc.
• Inventors: Gutierrez-Sheris, Luis Eduardo
• Primary Examiner(s): Karmis; Stefanos
• Application Number:
  US09/635,330
• Time in Patent Office: 3,569 Days
• Field of Search: 705 35- 42, 705/43
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/108 Remote banking, e.g. home banking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03

Abstract

A technique for transferring money between a customer and a beneficiary comprises a financial institution, serving as a money-transfer company, a plurality of selling agents, paying agents and ATM (automatic teller machine) card distributors that communicate via a telephone network and/or the Internet. Selling agents distribute transaction cards to customers for use in initiating a money transfer to a particular beneficiary. A selling agent uses a transaction card to transmit a customer'"'"'s request to the company, which creates a unique transaction record. The company returns a unique, secret fund pick-up (“folio”) number to the customer. The customer discloses the folio number to the beneficiary, who collects the transferred money. Specifically, the beneficiary may obtain an ATM card from an ATM card distributor and use that card to collect the transferred funds at a conventional ATM.

Claims

1. A method of transferring a sum of money from a customer to a beneficiary via a money-transfer company, a network of money dispensing machines and a plurality of distributors of money pick-up devices and corresponding personal codes capable of selective operation of said money dispensing machines, said method comprising:

collecting during a transaction said sum of money, via said money-transfer company, from a customer for transfer to a beneficiary;

generating, during the transaction with the customer, a transaction record within a database on a server computer controlled by the money-transfer company, the transaction record associated with the transaction with the customer and including data identifying the sum of money for transfer to the beneficiary and identifying the beneficiary;

generating, during the transaction with the customer, by the money-transfer company a unique single-use device pick-up code associated with the transaction with the customer, the transaction record associated with the transaction including the single-use device pick-up code;

providing, during the transaction with the customer, by the money-transfer company the generated unique single-use device pick-up code to the customer;

providing the unique single-use device pick-up code from the customer to the beneficiary;

presenting by said beneficiary said unique single-use device pick-up code to one of said distributors;

activating, by the distributor, one of said money pick-up devices the activating step including;

accessing the database on the server computer controlled by the money-transfer company to ascertain the transaction record generated during the transaction with the customer containing the presented unique single-use device pick-up code and identifying the beneficiary;

generating a device record within a database on a server computer associated with the money-transfer company, the generated device record including data representing a money pick-up device, the money pick-up device representing an activated money pick-up device, the generated device record further including data identifying the sum of money for transfer to the beneficiary as reflected in the transaction record;

generating a personal code associated with the money pick-up device, the generated personal code being different than the single-use device pick-up code, the generated device record including data representing the personal code;

providing, by the distributor to the beneficiary, the activated money pick-up device and the generated personal code; and

operating, by the beneficiary, one of said money dispensing machines to receive at least a portion of the sum of money identified in the generated device record using the activated money pick-up device and the personal code;

updating the device record to reflect the receiving by the beneficiary of the at least a portion of the sum of money.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the network of money dispensing machines is a network of automatic teller machines (ATMs) and the plurality of distributors of money pick-up devices and corresponding personal codes is a plurality of distributors of ATM cards and corresponding personal identification numbers (PINs), respectively.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of activating a money pick-up device includes the steps of the distributor selecting the money pick-up device from an inventory of money pick-up devices, and activating the money pick-up device selected from the inventory.

4. A money-transfer system for transferring a sum of money from a customer to a beneficiary, comprising:

means for collecting during a transaction the sum of money from the customer for transfer to the beneficiary;

means for generating, during the transaction with the customer, a transaction record within a database on a server computer connected to a communication network and controlled by the money-transfer company, the transaction record being associated with the transaction with the customer and including data identifying the sum of money for transfer to the beneficiary and identifying the beneficiary;

means for generating, during the transaction with the customer, a unique single-use device pick-up code associated with the transaction with the customer, the transaction record associated with the transaction including the single-use device pick-up code; and

means for providing, during the transaction with the customer, the generated unique single-use device pick-up code to the customer;

means to accept by a distributor the unique single-use device pick-up code presented by the beneficiary;

means to access the database on the server computer on the communication network to ascertain the transaction record generated during the transaction with the customer to verify the presented single-use device pick-up code;

means for activating by the distributor a money pick-up device upon verifying the presented single-use device pick-up code;

means for generating a device record within a database on a server associated with the money-transfer company, the generated device record including data representing one of multiple money pick-up devices, the one of multiple money pick-up devices representing an activated money pick-up device, the generated device record further including data identifying the sum of money for transfer to the beneficiary as reflected in the transaction record; and

means for generating a personal code associated with the money pick-up device, the generated personal code being different than the single-use device pick-up code, the generated device record including data representing the personal code;

means for dispensing at least a portion of the sum of money identified in the generated device record in response to the beneficiary using the activated money pick-up device and the personal code; and

means for updating the device record to reflect the dispensing of the at least a portion of the sum of money.

5. The money-transfer system of claim 4, wherein the means for dispensing is an automatic teller machine (ATM) and the money pick-up device and the associated personal code is an ATM card and a personal identification number (PIN), respectively.

6. The money-transfer system of claim 4, wherein the activating means includes means for selecting the money pick-up device from an inventory of money pick-up devices;

and means for activating the money pick-up device selected from the inventory.