Financial management system and method with debt management

• US 8,719,132 B1
• Filed: 09/12/2012
• Issued: 05/06/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wells Fargo Bank NA (Wells Fargo & Company)
• Original Assignee: Wells Fargo Bank NA (Wells Fargo & Company)
• Inventors: Maher, John, Moore, Karen Lynne, Lee, Yon Wing, McMahon, Brian Paul, Diggdon, Andrew J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Colbert, Ella
• Application Number:
  US13/612,703
• Time in Patent Office: 601 Days
• Field of Search: 705/30, 705/35, 705/38, 705/39
• US Class Current: 705/35
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/00 Payment architectures, schemes or protocols apparatus for performing or posting payment transactions G07F7/08, G07F19/00; electronic cash registers G07G1/12
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/085 involving remote charge determination or related payment systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/14 specially adapted for billing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/227 characterised in that multiple accounts are available, e.g. to the payer
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/405 Establishing or using transaction specific rules
• 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 40/03 Credit; Loans; Processing thereof

Abstract

A computer-implemented data processing system includes a data storage device and a processor and program logic stored in memory and executable by the processor. The program logic may include account management logic coupled to the data storage device to manage accounts respectively associated with a plurality of users, and interface logic coupled to the account management logic and the data storage device to connect the data processing system to computing systems associated with the plurality of users by way of the Internet, the interface logic providing the users with web access to an on-line banking area of a website of a financial institution, the interface logic further configured to establish a connection with one of the users and provide the user with a user interface. The user interface may be customizable based on inputs received from the user to provide selected ones of display modules.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented data processing system comprising:

a data storage system; and

a processor and program logic stored in memory and executable by the processor, the program logic including

account management logic coupled to the data storage system and configured to manage accounts respectively associated with a plurality of users, the account management logic including account processing logic configured to process transactions for the accounts and store account data related to the accounts in the data storage device;

budget logic coupled to the account management logic and configured to determine budget spending amounts for a user for a plurality of categories, the budget logic further configured to identify a surplus cash flow amount for the user;

debt management logic coupled to the account management logic and the data storage system, the debt management logic configured to

access the account data stored in the storage device;

determine an amount of debt owed by the user based on accessing the account data stored in the storage device; and

establish a debt payment plan for the user configured to permit the user to pay off the amount of debt over a period of time, the debt payment plan including projected periodic debt payments determined based on the account data and the surplus cash flow amount for the user;

access the budget logic to identify additional areas of surplus cash flow and provide an accelerated debt payment plan to the user, the accelerated debt payment plan providing a payment schedule that pays off the debt owed by the user in a shorter time period than the debt payment plan; and

interface logic coupled to the debt payment logic and configured to establish a connection with the user and provide the user with a user interface, the user interface including debt payment data associated with the debt payment plan, the debt payment data configured to permit the user to track the user'"'"'s progress over time in making the periodic debt payments to pay off the amount of debt owed by the user.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the debt management logic is further configured to provide the user with a consolidated view that includes all of the debt owed by the user associated with the accounts processed by the account processing logic, the consolidated view being generated based on the debt management logic accessing the account data.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the account management logic is further configured to interface with one or more third-party financial institutions to identify third-party accounts of the user for which the user owes additional debt, and to update the consolidated view to include the additional debt owed by the user related to the third-party accounts of the user.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the additional areas of surplus cash flow are identified as coming from historic spending amounts of the user categorized as discretionary spending of the user.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the debt management logic is configured to provide periodic alerts to the user indicating the user'"'"'s progress in relation to paying off the debt owed by the user.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the additional areas of surplus cash flow are identified as coming from historic spending amounts of the user categorized as discretionary spending of the user.

7. A computer-implemented data processing system comprising:

a data storage system configured to store account data related to a plurality of financial accounts; and

a processor and program logic stored in memory and executable by the processor, the program logic including

budget logic configured to determine budget spending amounts for a user for a plurality of categories, the budget logic further configured to identify a surplus cash flow amount for the user;

debt management logic coupled to the data storage system, the debt management logic configured to

access the account data stored in the storage device;

determine an amount of debt owed by the user based on accessing the account data stored in the storage device; and

establish a debt payment plan for the user configured to permit the user to pay off the amount of debt over a period of time, the debt payment plan including projected periodic debt payments determined based on the account data and the surplus cash flow amount for the user;

access the budget logic to identify additional areas of surplus cash flow and provide an accelerated debt payment plan to the user, the accelerated debt payment plan providing a payment schedule that pays off the debt owed by the user in a shorter time period than the debt payment plan; and

interface logic coupled to the debt payment logic and configured to establish a connection with the user and provide the user with a user interface, the user interface including debt payment data associated with the debt payment plan.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the debt management logic is further configured to provide the user with a consolidated view that includes all of the debt owed by the user associated with the plurality of financial accounts, the consolidated view being generated based on the debt management logic accessing the account data.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising account management logic configured to interface with one or more third-party financial institutions to identify third-party accounts of the user for which the user owes additional debt, and to update the consolidated view to include the additional debt owed by the user related to the third-party accounts of the user.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the debt management logic is configured to provide periodic alerts to the user indicating the user'"'"'s progress in relation to paying off the debt owed by the user.

11. A computer-implemented data processing system comprising:

a data storage system configured to store account data related to a plurality of financial accounts; and

a processor and program logic stored in memory and executable by the processor, the program logic including

budget logic configured to identify a surplus cash flow amount for the user;

debt management logic coupled to the account management logic and the data storage system, the debt management logic configured to

determine an amount of debt owed by the user based on accessing the account data stored in the storage device; and

establish a debt payment plan for the user configured to permit the user to pay off the amount of debt over a period of time, the debt payment plan including projected periodic debt payments determined based on the account data and the surplus cash flow amount for the user;

access the budget logic to identify additional areas of surplus cash flow and provide an accelerated debt payment plan to the user, the accelerated debt payment plan providing a payment schedule that pays off the debt owed by the user in a shorter time period than the debt payment plan; and

interface logic coupled to the debt payment logic and configured to establish a connection with the user and provide the user with a user interface, the user interface including debt payment data associated with the debt payment plan.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the debt management logic is further configured to provide the user with a consolidated view that includes all of the debt owed by the user associated with the plurality of financial accounts, the consolidated view being generated based on the debt management logic accessing the account data.

13. The system of claim 12, further comprising account management logic configured to interface with one or more third-party financial institutions to identify third-party accounts of the user for which the user owes additional debt, and to update the consolidated view to include the additional debt owed by the user related to the third-party accounts of the user.

14. The system of claim 11, wherein the additional areas of surplus cash flow are identified as coming from historic spending amounts of the user categorized as discretionary spending of the user.

15. The system of claim 11, wherein the debt management logic is configured to provide periodic alerts to the user indicating the user'"'"'s progress in relation to paying off the debt owed by the user.