Investment company that invests in fixed income securities and has conventional and ETF share classes with different dividend payment frequencies

• US 7,792,725 B2
• Filed: 09/20/2007
• Issued: 09/07/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Vanguard Group Incorporated
• Original Assignee: The Vanguard Group Incorporated
• Inventors: Booraem, Glenn H., Hyatt, Kathryn J., Volpert, Kenneth E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Havan; Thu-Thao
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hammond, III; Thomas M
• Application Number:
  US11/858,668
• Publication Number:
  US 20090083194A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,083 Days
• Field of Search: 705 35- 40
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/06 Asset management; Financial planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

Methods and apparatus are provided to administer an investment company. The investment company issues one or more classes of shares that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at a net asset value. The investment company also issues one or more classes of shares that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in a secondary market at negotiated market prices. One or more computers maintain information regarding portfolio holdings of the investment company and outstanding shares in the investment company. Dividends are periodically declared at a first time interval for the outstanding shares that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at a net asset value. The amount of dividends to declare is calculated from the information maintained in the one or more computers. Dividends are periodically declared at a second time interval that is different from the first time interval for the outstanding shares that are exchange-traded. Again, the amount of dividends to declare is calculated from the information maintained in the one or more computers.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of administering an investment company, wherein the investment company invests at least a portion of its assets in fixed income securities and declares dividends from income earned on the assets, the method comprising:

(a) issuing one or more classes of shares that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value using a first computer processor of the investment company;

(b) issuing one or more classes of shares that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in a secondary market at negotiated market prices using a second computer processor of the investment company;

(c) maintaining information in one or more databases of the investment company regarding;

(i) portfolio holdings of the investment company, and

(ii) outstanding shares issued by the investment company, wherein the outstanding shares are shares in the portfolio holdings of the investment company, the outstanding shares including the one or more classes of shares that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value and the one or more classes of shares that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in a secondary market at negotiated market prices;

(d) one or more computers of the investment company periodically declaring dividends at a regularly scheduled first time interval for the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value, and calculating the amount of dividends to declare from the information maintained in the one or more databases;

(e) one or more computers of the investment company periodically declaring dividends at a regularly scheduled second time interval that is different from the regularly scheduled first time interval for the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices, and calculating the amount of dividends to declare from the information maintained in the one or more databases; and

(f) the one or more computers of the investment company paving the declared dividends of the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices, and the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the investment company invests substantially all of its assets in fixed income securities and declares dividends from income earned on the assets.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the first time interval is daily.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the second time interval is monthly.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the first time interval is daily and the second time interval is monthly.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein an owner of any share of any share class has an undivided interest in the investment company.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the investment company is an open-end fund.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the shares that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices are exchange-traded shares.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the investment company has an investment objective of tracking performance of a specific benchmark index of fixed income securities.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the declared dividends of (i) the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices, and (ii) the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value have a payment date, each have a respective payment date, and step (f) further comprises:

the one or more computers of the investment company paying the declared dividends of the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices at least a predetermined number of days after the payment date of the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value.

11. A data processing apparatus for administering an investment company, wherein the investment company invests at least a portion of its assets in fixed income securities and declares dividends from income earned on the assets, the apparatus comprising:

(a) a first computer processor of the investment company which records one or more classes of shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value;

(b) a second computer processor of the investment company which records one or more classes of shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices; and

(c) one or more computers and databases of the investment company that

(i) maintain information regarding portfolio holdings of the investment company and information regarding outstanding shares issued by the investment company, wherein the outstanding shares are shares in the portfolio holdings of the investment company, the outstanding shares including the one or more classes of shares that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value and the one or more classes of shares that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in a secondary market at negotiated market prices,

(ii) periodically record declared dividends for the outstanding shares issued by the investment company, wherein the one or more computers and databases of the investment company record declared dividends at a regularly scheduled first time interval for the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value, and record declared dividends at a regularly scheduled second time interval that is different from the regularly scheduled first time interval for the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices, the one or more computers of the investment company calculating the amount of dividends to declare from the information maintained in the one or more databases of the investment company; and

(iii) pay the declared dividends of the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices, and the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the investment company invests substantially all of its assets in fixed income securities and declares dividends from the income earned on the assets.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the first time interval is daily.

14. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the second time interval is monthly.

15. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the first time interval is daily and the second time interval is monthly.

16. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein an owner of any share of any share class has an undivided interest in the investment company.

17. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the investment company is an open-end fund.

18. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the shares that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices are exchange-traded shares.

19. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the investment company has an investment objective of tracking performance of a specific benchmark index of fixed income securities.

20. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the declared dividends of (i) the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices, and (ii) the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value each have a respective payment date, and the one or more computers of the investment company pay the declared dividends of the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are listed for trading on a securities exchange and that are bought and sold in the secondary market at negotiated market prices at least a predetermined number of days after the payment date of the outstanding shares issued by the investment company that are bought from and redeemed with the investment company at the net asset value.