Gradual conversion of financial accounts

• US 8,626,650 B2
• Filed: 04/28/2008
• Issued: 01/07/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: eBay Inc.
• Inventors: Scipioni, German, Fotsch, Donald James, Black, Joseph Edward, Poling, Amy, Tiritoglu, Alp
• Primary Examiner(s): Ziegle, Stephanie M
• Application Number:
  US12/110,944
• Publication Number:
  US 20080228615A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,080 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• 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 20/22 Payment schemes or models
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/227 characterised in that multiple accounts are available, e.g. to the payer
• 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 40/12 Accounting

Abstract

Embodiments describe a method and a system to link a secondary account to a primary account with an account management module associated with the primary account and to control access to funds in the secondary account with respect to a secondary account holder through the account management module. The secondary account includes a spending account and a savings account.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a processor;

an account set-up module coupled to the processor and to set up a primary account associated with a primary account holder and a secondary account associated with a secondary account holder; and

an account management module to link the secondary account to the primary account and to automatically adjust features associated with the secondary account based on performance of the secondary account holder, wherein the features associated with the secondary account is less than or equal to features associated with the primary account, wherein the account management module enables control by the primary account holder over the automatic adjustment of the features associated with the secondary account, and wherein automatically adjusting features associated with the secondary account includes comparing the performance of the secondary account holder with a graduated track.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the graduated track comprises step by step progress of the secondary account holder.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the account management module is to adjust the features associated with the secondary account by analyzing one or more of accessing, spending, purchasing, depositing, debiting, transferring, and advertising associated with the secondary account.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the account management module is to adjust the features associated with the secondary account closer to or away from the features associated with the primary account depending on the performance of the secondary account holder.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the account setup module is to convert the secondary account into a new primary account when the features of the secondary account are equal to the features of the primary account.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the account management module is to unlink the secondary account from the primary account when the secondary is converted into the new primary account.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the graduated track is related to one or more of graduating from a school, demonstrating financial responsibility, and demonstrating maturity and trust.

8. A computer-implemented method comprising:

establishing a first account and a second account, using an account set-up module, the second account linked to the first account, the first account associated with a first set of features, the second account associated with a second set of features which is a subset of the first set of features; and

adjusting, automatically with an account management module, the second set of features responsive to instructions, including a graduated track, received from a first account holder associated with the first account, wherein the instructions are related to performance of a second account holder associated with the second account, the performance based on one or more gradual criteria, and wherein automatically adjusting the second set of features includes comparing the performance of the second account holder with the graduated track.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, further comprising:

enabling the first account holder to monitor transactions associated with the second account.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the instructions received from the first account holder comprises instructions to add features to and instructions to remove features from the second set of features based on the performance of the second account holder.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising enabling the second set of features to be equivalent to the first set of features when the one or more gradual criteria is satisfied by the second account holder.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, further comprising unlinking the second account from the first account.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 8 wherein the gradual criteria includes growth in maturity, financial responsibility and trust.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the gradual criteria includes graduation.

15. A non-transitory machine-readable medium comprising instructions, which when implemented by one or more processors perform the following operations:

enabling a primary account holder of a primary account to have control over features of a secondary account associated with a secondary account holder, wherein the secondary account is linked to the primary account, and wherein the features of the secondary account are less than or equal to features of the primary account; and

automatically adjusting the features of the secondary account enabling the primary account holder to gradually relinquish the control over the features of the secondary account based on performance of the secondary account holder as measured against one or more criteria, wherein the automatically adjusting the features of the secondary account includes comparing the performance of the secondary account holder with the one or more criteria, the one or more criteria including a graduated track.

16. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 15 wherein the one or more criteria comprises graduation, financial responsibility, maturity, and trust.

17. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 15 wherein the control over the features of the secondary account is totally relinquished when the one or more criteria is met by the secondary account holder.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein, responsive to the control over the features of the secondary account being totally relinquished, the secondary account is unlinked from the primary account.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 18, wherein, responsive to the control over the features of the secondary account being totally relinquished, the secondary account is upgraded to a new account similar to the primary account.