System and method for an exchange of financial instruments

• US 7,742,973 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2005
• Issued: 06/22/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Credigy Technologies Inc. (National Bank of Canada)
• Original Assignee: Credigy Technologies Inc. (National Bank of Canada)
• Inventors: Eriksson, Malin, Samsky, Brett M., Williams, Jason S., Stewart, Steve
• Primary Examiner(s): Havan; Thu Thao
• Application Number:
  US11/095,749
• Publication Number:
  US 20060224483A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,909 Days
• Field of Search: 705 37- 38
• US Class Current: 705/37
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/03 Credit; Loans; Processing thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange

Abstract

Provided is a method and system for an online marketplace for the buying, selling and Servicing of financial instruments, such as accounts receivable, where the online marketplace receives and analyzes Account data from a Reporting Agency Database, such as a Consumer Reporting Agency Database. The online marketplace may include a plurality of business logic Components, including an Analysis Component, an Inventory Management Component, an Offer Component, a Transaction Component, a Post-Transaction Component, a Receivables Management Knowledge Base and a Servicing Component. The Receivables Management Knowledge Base applies industry rules and regulations to the data. Users of the online marketplace may be Account Owners, Buyers, sellers, Servicers and the like. Users flag Accounts in the Consumer Reporting Agency database to be placed for sale on the online marketplace. Users may also define Selection Criteria for automatic buying, automatic selling, alerts or other such business rules.

Claims

1. A system of transacting for a financial instrument, comprising:

a. A reporting agency database, including personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument, wherein the financial instrument represents an account receivable;

b. An account database; and

c. A processor for;

i. Receiving at least a portion of the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

ii. Searching the account database for one or more available financial instruments based on a selection criteria;

iii. Selecting at least one financial instrument that satisfies the selection criteria from the available financial instruments;

iv. Offering a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument;

v. Receiving an acceptance to the offered transaction; and

vi. Performing the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the reporting agency database comprises a consumer reporting agency database.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the reporting agency database comprises a commercial reporting agency database.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein a plurality of system users access the processor through an online marketplace connected to a communications network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein account data comprises consumer information.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the offered transaction comprises a sale of the financial instrument.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the offered transaction comprises a purchase of the financial instrument.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the offered transaction comprises placement of the financial instrument.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the offered transaction comprises servicing the financial instrument.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor performs the selecting step by performing the steps of:

a. Displaying, on a user interface, a selection criteria listing at least one parameter associated with the account data;

b. Receiving a system user input of a parameter selection;

c. Receiving a system user input of a value for the selected parameter;

d. Updating the account database with the selection criteria;

e. Retrieving account data from the account database;

f. Processing the selection criteria against the retrieved account data;

g. Creating selection flags based on selection criteria; and

h. Updating the account database with the created selection flags.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the parameter value is retrieved from a receivables management knowledge base.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the parameter value is derived from data related to transaction activity.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the parameter selection comprises a parameter chosen for potential consolidation.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor performs the offering step by performing the steps of:

a. Retrieving account data from the account database;

b. Displaying, on a user interface, account data related to a system user;

c. Receiving inputs from the system user selecting an offering; and

d. Updating the account database.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the processor performs the offering step by further performing the steps of:

a. Displaying, on a user interface, a system user commitment required for each offering;

b. Receiving a system user input of acceptance of terms and conditions of a commitment related to each offering; and

c. Updating the account database.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor further performs the step of:

a. Processing a post-transaction request.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the processing a post-transaction request step further comprises putting back the performed transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the processing a post-transaction request step further comprises transmitting documentation associated with the performed transaction.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein documentation comprises media, titles, chain of title, inventory reconciliations, consent issues and contract conditions monitoring related to the transacted financial instrument.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor further performs the step of:

a. Updating the reporting agency database.

21. A method of transacting for a financial instrument, for use in conjunction with a reporting agency database that includes account data related to the financial instrument, and an account database, the method comprising the steps of:

a. Receiving at least a portion of the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the account data in the reporting agency database includes personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument and the financial instrument represents an account receivable, and wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

b. Searching the account database for one or more available financial instruments based on a selection criteria;

c. Selecting at least one financial instrument in the account database that satisfies the selection criteria;

d. Offering a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument;

e. Receiving an acceptance to the offered transaction; and

f. Performing the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the reporting agency database comprises a consumer reporting agency database.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the reporting agency database comprises a commercial reporting agency database.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein a plurality of system users access the processor through an online marketplace connected to a communications network.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein account data comprises consumer information.

26. The method of claim 21, wherein the offered transaction comprises a sale of the financial instrument.

27. The method of claim 21, wherein the offered transaction comprises a purchase of the financial instrument.

28. The method of claim 21, wherein the offered transaction comprises placement of the financial instrument.

29. The method of claim 21, wherein the offered transaction comprises servicing the financial instrument.

30. The method of claim 21, wherein the selecting step further comprises the steps of:

a. Displaying, on a user interface, a selection criteria listing at least one parameter associated with the account data;

b. Receiving a system user input of a parameter selection;

c. Receiving a system user input of a value for the selected parameter;

d. Updating the account database with the selection criteria;

e. Retrieving account data from the account database;

f. Processing the selection criteria against the retrieved account data;

g. Creating selection flags based on selection criteria; and

h. Updating the account database with the created selection flags.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein a parameter value is retrieved from a receivables management knowledge base.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the parameter value is derived from data related to transaction activity.

33. The method of claim 30, wherein a parameter selection comprises a parameter related to potential consolidation.

34. The method of claim 21, wherein the offering step further comprises the steps of:

a. Retrieving account data from the account database;

b. Displaying, on a user interface, account data related to a system user;

c. Receiving inputs from the system user selecting an offering; and

d. Updating the account database.

35. The method of claim 21, further comprising the step of:

a. Updating the reporting agency database.

36. The method of claim 21, further comprising the step of:

a. Processing a post-transaction request.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the processing a post-transaction request step further comprises putting back the performed transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument.

38. The method of claim 36, wherein the processing a post-transaction request step further comprises transmitting documentation associated with the performed transaction.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein documentation comprises media, titles, chain of title, inventory reconciliations, consent issues and contract conditions monitoring related to the transacted financial instrument.

40. A system of transacting for a financial instrument, utilizing account data received from a reporting agency database, comprising:

a. An account database; and

b. A processor for;

i. Receiving at least a portion of the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the account data in the reporting agency database includes personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument and the financial instrument represents an account receivable, and wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

ii. Searching the account database for available account data based on a selection criteria;

iii. Selecting account data in the account database that satisfies the selection criteria;

iv. Offering a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument associated with the selected account data;

v. Receiving an acceptance to the offered transaction from a third-party; and

vi. Performing the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument.

41. The system of claim 40, wherein the reporting agency database comprises a consumer reporting agency database.

42. A system for an online marketplace, comprising:

a. A reporting agency database, including personally identifiable account data associated with a financial instrument wherein the financial instrument represents an account receivable;

b. An account database;

c. A processor for;

i. Receiving at least a portion of the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

ii. Searching the account database for available account data based on a selection criteria;

iii. Selecting account data in the account database that satisfies the criteria selected by a first party;

iv. Offering to a second party a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument associated with the selected account data;

v. Receiving an acceptance to the offered transaction from a second party; and

vi. Performing the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument between the first party and the second party.

43. A method of transacting for a financial instrument, for use in conjunction with a reporting agency database that includes account data associated with the financial instrument, an account database, comprising the steps of:

a. Receiving at least a portion of the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the account data in the reporting agency database includes personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument and the financial instrument represents an account receivable, and wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

b. Searching the account database for available account data based on a selection criteria;

c. Selecting account data in the account database that satisfies the criteria selected by a first party;

d. Offering to a second party a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument associated with the selected account data;

e. Receiving an acceptance to the offered transaction from a second party; and

f. Performing the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument between the first party and the second party.

44. A method of transacting for a financial instrument, for use in conjunction with a reporting agency database that includes account data associated with the financial instrument, and an account database, the method comprising the steps of:

a. Receiving account data from a reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the account data in the reporting agency database includes personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument and the financial instrument represents an account receivable, and wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

b. Searching the account database for available account data based on a selection criteria;

c. Selecting account data in the account database that satisfies the selection criteria;

d. Offering a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument associated with the selected consumer information and account data; and

e. Receiving an acceptance to the offered transaction from a third-party, whereby the accepted transaction is performed for the at least one selected financial instrument.

45. The method of claim 44, wherein the reporting agency database comprises a consumer reporting agency database.

46. A computer-readable storage medium containing a set of instructions for use on a computer in conjunction with a reporting agency database that includes account data related to the financial instrument, and an account database, the set of instructions encoded to perform the steps of:

a. Receiving the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the account data in the reporting agency database includes personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument and the financial instrument represents an account receivable, and wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

b. Searching the account database for available financial instruments based on a selection criteria;

c. Selecting at least one financial instrument in the account database that satisfies the selection criteria;

d. Offering a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument;

e. Receiving an acceptance to the offered transaction; and

f. Performing the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument.

47. A computer-readable storage medium containing a set of instructions for use on a computer in conjunction with a reporting agency database that includes account data related to the financial instrument, and an account database, the set of instructions encoded to perform the steps of:

a. Receiving the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the account data in the reporting agency database includes personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument and the financial instrument represents an account receivable, and wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

b. Searching the account database for available account data based on a selection criteria;

c. Selecting account data in the account database that satisfies the selection criteria by the first party;

d. Offering to a second party a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument associated with the selected account data;

e. Receiving an acceptance to the offered transaction from the second party; and

f. Performing the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument between the first party and the second party.

48. A computer-readable storage medium containing computer-readable code for use on a computer in conjunction with a reporting agency database that includes account data related to the financial instrument, and an account database, the computer-readable storage medium comprising:

a. means for causing the computer to receive the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the account data in the reporting agency database includes personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument and the financial instrument represents an account receivable, and wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

b. means for causing the computer to search the account database for financial instruments based on a selection criteria;

c. means for causing the computer to select a financial instrument in the account database that satisfies the selection criteria;

d. means for causing the computer to offer a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument;

e. means for causing the computer to receive an acceptance to the offered transaction; and

f. means for causing the computer to perform the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument.

49. A computer-readable storage medium containing computer-readable code for use on a computer in conjunction with a reporting agency database that includes account data related to the financial instrument, and an account database, the computer-readable storage medium comprising:

a. means for causing the computer to receive the account data from the reporting agency database to the account database, wherein the account data in the reporting agency database includes personally identifiable account data related to a financial instrument and the financial instrument represents an account receivable, and wherein the received account data is not personally identifiable but is related to the account data of the reporting agency database by one or more unique identifiers;

b. means for causing the computer to search an account database for account data based on a selection criteria by a first party;

c. means for causing the computer to select account data in the account database that satisfies the selection criteria by a the first party;

d. means for causing the computer to offer to a second party a transaction for at least one selected financial instrument associated with the selected account data;

e. means for causing the computer to receive an acceptance to the offered transaction from the second party; and

f. means for causing the computer to perform the accepted transaction for the at least one selected financial instrument between the first party and the second party.

50. A method for selling accounts through transactions over a network comprised of:

a. receiving selection criteria from a system user;

b. searching an account database for available accounts based on said selection criteria, wherein said accounts represent accounts receivable;

c. providing results of said searching to the system user, said results including a summary of available accounts and a balance for each available account;

d. receiving a selection of at least one of said available accounts from the system user;

e. grouping the selected at least one of said available accounts by parameters, wherein said parameters includes account data comprising balance of the accounts;

f. receiving an offer from the system user corresponding to said selected at least one of said available accounts;

g. providing an invoice to the system user for said selected at least one of said available accounts;

h. receiving a payment from the system user in response to the invoice; and

i. updating the selected at least one of said available accounts in the account database in response to the received payment.

51. The method of claim 50, wherein searching an account database for available accounts based on said selection criteria comprises searching a consumer reporting agency account database for available accounts based on said selection criteria.

52. A system for selling accounts through transactions over a network, said system comprising:

an account database for storing and maintaining information relating to available accounts, wherein said accounts represent accounts receivable; and

a processor coupled with said account database and to the network, said processor configured to

a. receive selection criteria from a system user over the network,

b. to search said account database for available accounts based on said selection criteria,

c. to provide results of said search to the system user over the network, said results including a summary of available accounts and a balance for each available account,

d. to receive a selection of at least one of said available accounts from the system user,

e. to group the selected at least one of said available accounts by parameters, wherein said parameters includes account data comprising balance of the accounts,

f. to receive an offer from the system user corresponding to said selected at least one of said available accounts,

g. to provide an invoice to the system user for said selected at least one of said available accounts,

h. to receive a payment from the system user in response to the invoice, and

i. to update the selected at least one of said available accounts in the account database.

53. The system of claim 52, wherein the account database is a consumer reporting agency account database.