Systems and methods for funding payback requests for financial transactions

• US 7,941,370 B2
• Filed: 12/12/2006
• Issued: 05/10/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Baker Tilly, Trust Payments Ltd. (Trust Payments Holdings Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: UC Group Ltd.
• Inventors: Hughes, Ian, Holland, Mark, Paulsen, Kobus
• Primary Examiner(s): Colbert; Ella
• Assistant Examiner(s): Holly; John H
• Application Number:
  US11/609,779
• Publication Number:
  US 20070250440A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,610 Days
• Field of Search: 705/1, 705/39, 705/40, 705/67, 705/14, 705/72, 705/74, 705/51, 705/80, 235/380, 235/379, 726/1
• US Class Current: 705/39
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/0855 involving a third party
• 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 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/20 Point-of-sale [POS] network systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/204 comprising interface for record bearing medium or carrier for electronic funds transfer or payment credit
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/207 Tax processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3674 involving authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/383 Anonymous user system
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/401 Transaction verification
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4016 involving fraud or risk level assessment in transaction processing
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/123 Tax preparation or submission
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/188 Electronic negotiation

Abstract

Various embodiments of the invention provide a more secure financial transaction system for e-commerce sectors that (1) more securely processes payment transactions, (2) helps to protect merchants and banks against fraudulent transactions, money laundering, and underage gambling, and (3) helps to limit other abuses in areas of e-commerce that are perceived to pose special risks, such as Internet gaming, travel, and consumer purchasing of electronic goods. To accomplish the above goals, various embodiments of the financial transaction system (1) establish operating and transaction processing protocols for merchants, Internet payment service providers, acquiring banks, and card schemes and (2) provide automated systems for monitoring and securely processing payment and financial transactions.

Claims

1. A system for processing a financial transaction with an online merchant, the system comprising:

a computing device configured to execute a payment service provider module, the payment service provider module configured for;

receiving a request to transfer funds from a customer account to an online merchant;

in response to receiving the request to transfer funds, allocating a portion of funds being less than all of the funds to be paid to the online merchant to an escrow account limited solely for the benefit of one or more customers to fund a chargeback request or a refund request;

in response to allocating the portion of the funds to be paid to the online merchant to the escrow account, storing the allocated portion of funds in the escrow account for a lesser of a predetermined period of time or until the chargeback request or the refund request is received by the system;

in response to the merchant receiving a reduced number of chargeback requests or refund requests over a particular time period, reducing the portion of funds to be allocated into the escrow account; and

in response to the merchant receiving an increased number of chargeback requests or refund requests over the particular time period, increasing the portion of funds to be allocated into the escrow account.