Systems and methods for conducting derivative trades electronically

• US 7,761,368 B2
• Filed: 04/24/2007
• Issued: 07/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/16/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Blackbird Holdings, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Blackbird Holdings, Inc.
• Inventors: May, Richard Raymond
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel; Jagdish N
• Assistant Examiner(s): CHANDLER, SARA M
• Application Number:
  US11/739,497
• Publication Number:
  US 20070282733A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,183 Days
• Field of Search: 705/37
• US Class Current: 705/37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/06 Asset management; Financial planning or analysis

Abstract

The present invention facilitates efficient negotiations of trade terms and the generation of an electronic trade ticket in the trading of financial instruments. The negotiation process is preferably conducted through a secure online chat program using point-to-point messaging, though the negotiations can take place using the tradition exchanges of phone calls and faxes outside of the confines of an electronic trading system. Once the trade terms have been agreed upon by both parties, then the parties enter an electronic trading system in accordance with the present invention to select the traded financial instrument and generate an electronic trade ticket with can be stored by the trading system and/or the each of the trading parties.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

initiating an electronic chat session on two trader computing devices of an electronic trading system between at least two traders using the trader computing devices to negotiate terms of a transaction of financial instrument, wherein the trader computing devices are communicably connected to each other and to a central processing center via a communications network;

transmitting, by one of the trader computing devices, trader input indicating a selected financial instrument agreed upon during the electronic chat session by the traders to transact;

receiving the trader input at the central processing center of the electronic trading system via one of the trader computing devices indicating the selected financial instrument agreed upon during the electronic chat session by the traders to transact;

transmitting, by one of the trader computing devices, trader input indicating contract terms defining the transaction of the financial instrument agreed upon during the electronic chat session by the traders;

receiving the trader input at the central processing center of the electronic trading system via one of the trader computing devices indicating the contract terms defining the transaction of the financial instrument agreed upon during the electronic chat session by the traders;

retrieving, by the central processing center of the electronic trading system, a format pre-selected for each of the traders;

generating, by the central processing center of the electronic trading system, an electronic trade ticket for the transaction, wherein generating the electronic trade ticket comprises formatting the electronic trade ticket for each of the traders based upon the format pre-selected for each of the traders; and

transmitting, by the central processing center of the electronic trading system, the electronic trade ticket to the traders.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the electronic trade ticket comprises generating the electronic trade ticket in a format of a fax document.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the electronic trade ticket comprises generating the electronic trade ticket in a format of an XML file.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising exploding the selected financial instrument to reveal to a trader definitional components of the financial instrument.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the trader input at the central processing center of the electronic trading system indicating the selected financial instrument comprises receiving an indication of one or more of a class, a currency and a symbol of the financial instrument.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, by one of the trader computing devices of the at least two traders, trader input indicating confirmation, by each of the at least two traders, of the contract terms of the electronic trade ticket; and

receiving the trader input at the central processing center of the electronic trading system indicating confirmation, by the at least two traders, of the contract terms of the electronic trade ticket.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising automatically loading the electronic trade ticket into the processing systems of the at least two traders and automatically processing the electronic trade ticket by the processing systems.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein initiating the electronic chat session comprises presenting a chat screen to the traders comprising:

a display window identifying the traders presently logged into the system;

a chat display window configured to provide a chronological sequence of statements made between the traders in the electronic chat session; and

a message display window configured to present messages for input to the electronic chat session and to be display in the chat display window.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein initiating the electronic chat session comprises receiving trader input from one of the at least two traders indicating a plurality of other traders presently logged into the system with whom to conduct the electronic chat session.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein initiating an electronic chat session comprises initiating a private chat session between the traders.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

automatically loading the electronic trade ticket into a processing system of at least one of the traders; and

automatically processing the electronic trade ticket by the processing system.

12. A computer program product comprising a computer-readable memory having control logic stored therein for execution on a central processing computer of an electronic trading system, said control logic comprising:

a first code configured to initiate an electronic chat session of an electronic trading system between at least two traders to negotiate terms of a transaction of financial instrument;

a second code configured to receive trader input into the system indicating a selected financial instrument agreed upon during the electronic chat session by the traders to transact;

a third code configured to receive trader input into the system indicating contract terms defining the transaction of the financial instrument agreed upon during the electronic chat session by the traders;

a fourth code configured to retrieve a format pre-selected for each of the traders;

a fifth code configured to generate an electronic trade ticket for the transaction, wherein the fifth code is further configured to format the electronic trade ticket for each of the traders based upon the format pre-selected for each of the traders; and

a sixth code configured to transmit the electronic trade ticket to the traders.

13. The computer program product of claim 12, further comprising seventh code configured to explode the selected financial instrument to reveal to a trader definitional components of the financial instrument.

14. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the second code is further configured to receive an indication of one or more of a class, currency, and symbol of the financial instrument.

15. The computer program product of claim 12, further comprising seventh code configured to automatically load the electronic trade ticket into the processing systems of the at least two traders.

16. The computer program product of claim 12, further comprising seventh code configured to receive confirmation of the contract terms of the electronic trade ticket from at least one of the traders.

17. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the first code is further configured to present a chat screen to the traders comprising:

a display window identifying the traders presently logged into the system;

a chat display window configured to provide a chronological sequence of statements made between the traders in the electronic chat session; and

a message display window configured to present messages for input to the electronic chat session and to be display in the chat display window.

18. The computer program product of claim 12, wherein the first code is further configured to receive trader input from one of the at least two traders indicating a plurality of other traders presently logged into the system with whom to conduct the electronic chat session.

19. A method, comprising:

initiating an electronic chat session between at least two traders using at least two trader computing devices of an electronic trading system to negotiate terms of a transaction of financial instrument, wherein the trader computing devices are communicably connected to each other and to a central processing center via a communications network;

receiving trader input into the central processing center of the electronic trading system via one of the trader computing devices indicating a selected financial instrument agreed upon during the electronic chat session by the traders to transact;

receiving trader input into the central processing center of the electronic trading system via one of the trader computing devices indicating contract terms defining the transaction of the financial instrument agreed upon during the electronic chat session by the traders;

retrieving, by the central processing center of the electronic trading system, a format pre-selected for each of the traders;

generating, by the central processing center of the electronic trading system, an electronic trade ticket for the transaction, wherein generating an electronic trade ticket comprises formatting the electronic trade ticket for each of the traders based upon the format pre-selected for each of the traders; and

transmitting, by the central processing center of the electronic trading system, the electronic trade ticket to the traders.