SUPPLY CHAIN FINANCE SYSTEM

• US 20130173464A1
• Filed: 10/27/2011
• Published: 07/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PrimeRevenue Incorporated
• Original Assignee: PrimeRevenue Incorporated
• Inventors: Quillian, David W.
• Granted Patent: US 10,592,943 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03

Abstract

In an electronic supply chain finance system, a method of enabling a supplier to obtain funds includes receiving information from a buyer defining a payment obligation, receiving an offer to sell the payment obligation, and creating an electronic negotiable instrument on behalf of the buyer as obligor, to the supplier as payee, having a payable date based on a maturity date of the payment obligation and a payment value based on a payment amount of the payment obligation.

Claims

1. An electronic supply chain finance system utilized by a buyer, a supplier that provides at least one of goods and services to the buyer and a financial institution, each of which accesses the system through a computer network interface, comprising:

a computer-readable medium containing program instructions, and

a processor in operative communication with the computer-readable medium and adapted to execute the program instructions to implement a method comprising the steps of

receiving information from the buyer defining a payment obligation from the buyer to the supplier,

presenting the payment obligation to the supplier,

receiving from the supplier an offer to sell the payment obligation,

presenting the offer to a financial institution,

receiving an acceptance of the offer from the financial institution,

creating an electronic negotiable instrument, on behalf of the buyer as obligor, to the supplier as obligee and having a payable date based on a maturity date of the payment obligation and a payment value based on a payment amount of the payment obligation, and

upon receipt of acceptance of the offer by the financial institution, indorsing the negotiable instrument on behalf of the supplier in favor of the financial institution as the payee in effecting a trade between the supplier and the financial institution prior to the maturity date that is based on the offer and the acceptance.

2. The system as in claim 1, wherein the payable date is the maturity date.

3. The system as in claim 1, wherein, upon receipt of the information from the buyer defining the payment obligation, the payment obligation is irrevocable by the buyer.

4. The system as in claim 1, wherein the sell offer has a discounted value and a payment date earlier than the maturity date.

5. The system as in claim 1, wherein the negotiable instrument is a time draft, on behalf of the buyer as drawer, to the supplier as payee, and drawn on an account owned or controlled by the buyer.

6. The system as in claim 1, wherein the method implemented by the processor comprises the step of, after creation of the negotiable instrument and receipt of the acceptance, transferring to the supplier an amount of funds determined by terms of the offer.

7. The system as in claim 1, wherein the creating step implemented by the processor comprises associating the negotiable instrument with an encrypted unique identifier.

8. The system as in claim 1, wherein the program instructions implement the step of creating an electronic negotiable instrument after implementing the step of receiving the acceptance.

9. The system as in claim 1, wherein the information received at the first receiving step comprises accounts payable information, and

wherein the negotiable instrument has the buyer as obligor, supplier as obligee, a payable date based on the maturity date, and a payment value based on the payment amount.

10. The system as in claim 9, wherein the payable date is the maturity date.

11. The system as in claim 9, wherein the negotiable instrument is a time draft, on behalf of the buyer as drawer, to the supplier as payee, and drawn on an account owned or controlled by the buyer.

12. The system as in claim 9, wherein the method implemented by the processor comprises the step of, upon receipt of acceptance of the offer and indorsement of the negotiable instrument, effecting transfer to the supplier of an amount of funds determined by terms of the offer.

13. The system as in claim 1, wherein the payment obligation defined by the information received at the first receiving step corresponds to a transaction in which the supplier provides the goods and/or services to the buyer, and

wherein the negotiable instrument substitutes for and extinguishes all other obligations of the buyer to pay the supplier for the goods and/or services from the transaction.

15. The system as in claim 13, wherein the method comprises, upon receipt of the acceptance and indorsement of the negotiable instrument, effecting transfer to the supplier from the financial institution of an amount of funds determined by terms of the offer.

16. The system as in claim 13, wherein the payment obligation comprises an account payable from the buyer to the supplier.

17. The system as in claim 13, wherein the payment obligation arises upon receipt of the information from the buyer, and wherein pursuant to agreement by the buyer the payment obligation is irrevocable by the buyer.

18. The system as in claim 1, wherein the payment obligation defined by the information received at the first receiving step corresponds to a transaction in which supplier provides the goods and/or services to the buyer, and

wherein the process is adapted to execute the program instructions to implement the method comprising the further step of

upon indorsement of the negotiable instrument, effecting transfer to the supplier from the financial institution of an amount of funds determined by terms of the offer.

19. The system as in claim 18, wherein the payment obligation arises upon receipt of the information from the buyer, and wherein pursuant to agreement by the buyer the payment obligation is irrevocable by the buyer.

14. (canceled)

20. (canceled)

21. (canceled)