Method and apparatus for funds and credit line transfers

• US 6,267,292 B1
• Filed: 07/22/1999
• Issued: 07/31/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/13/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: PayPal, Inc. (PayPal Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Walker Digital LLC (Walker Innovation Inc. (f/k/a Patent Properties, Inc.))
• Inventors: Jorasch, James A., Jindal, Sanjay K., Walker, Jay S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Frech, Karl D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): St. Cyr, Daniel
• Application Number:
  US09/359,002
• Time in Patent Office: 740 Days
• Field of Search: 235/379, 235/380, 235/382, 235/375, 380/23, 380/24, 380/25, 705/35, 705/39
• US Class Current: 235/379
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/382 insuring higher security of transaction
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/401 Transaction verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0866 by active credit-cards adapted therefor G07F7/1008 takes precedence

Abstract

A financial tender transfer system allows a transferor to transfer credit or make payment to a transferee by debiting the credit card of the transferor and crediting the credit card of the transferee. The financial tender transfer system gives the transferee immediate access to the transferred money and ensures the transferor'"'"'s credit card is valid. Neither party needs to give their credit card number to the other, so security is preserved. Any amount of value up to the full credit line of the transferor can be transferred to the transferee.

Claims

1. A system for transferring funds between credit card accounts held by different individuals, comprising:

means for receiving information about a requested transfer of funds, the information including information used to identify a transferee credit card account, information used to identify a transferor credit card account, and information identifying an amount of funds to be transferred;

means for determining whether the transferor credit card account is valid and if sufficient funds are available to transfer the requested amount of funds;

means for determining whether the transferee credit card account is valid; and

means for causing the amount of funds to be transferred from the credit card account of the transferor to the credit card account of the transferee, thereby increasing an amount owed by the transferor and decreasing an amount owed by the transferee.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the information is received from the transferee.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the information used to identify a transferee credit card account includes a transferee identification number, the system further comprising:

means for associating the transferee identification number with a transferee credit card account number, a transferee name, and an expiration date of the transferee credit card account.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the information is received from the transferee after the transferee has received information used to identify the transferor from the transferor.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the information used to identify a transferor credit card account includes a portion of a transferor credit card account number, a transferor name, and a transferor credit card account expiration date.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the information used to identify a transferor credit card account includes an encrypted code, the system further comprising:

means for decrypting the encrypted code to recover a transferor credit card account number.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the information is received from the transferor after the transferor has received information used to identify the transferee from the transferee.

8. A method for facilitating payment between a first and a second individual, the method comprising:

receiving information about a requested transfer of funds, the information including information used to identify a first credit card account held by the first individual, information used to identify a second credit card account held by the second individual, and information identifying an amount of funds to be transferred;

determining whether the first credit card account is valid and if sufficient funds are available to transfer the requested amount of funds;

determining whether the second credit card account is valid; and

causing the amount of funds to be transferred from the first credit card account to the second credit card account, thereby increasing an amount owed by the first individual and decreasing an amount owed by the second individual.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the information is received from the first individual.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the information used to identify a first credit card account includes a first individual identification number, the method further comprising:

associating the first individual identification number with a first credit card account number, a name of the first individual, and an expiration date of the first credit card account.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the information is received from the first individual after the first individual has received information used to identify the second individual.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the information used to identify the second individual is received from the second individual.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the information used to identify the second credit card account includes a portion of a second credit card account number, a name of the second individual, and a second credit card account expiration date.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the information used to identify a second credit card account includes an encrypted code, the method further comprising:

decrypting the encrypted code to recover the second credit card account number.

15. The method of claim 8, wherein the information is received from the second individual after the second individual has received information used to identify the first individual.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the information used to identify the first individual is received from the first individual.