The present invention relates generally to the field of transaction payments, and in particular to instruments that may be purchased at retail locations in order to facilitate money transfer and other payments.
Money transfer and similar arrangements are used by many consumers in lieu of bank accounts to send money, make payments and conduct similar transactions. Some consumers use such arrangements in lieu of a bank account because they may be less affluent, may not have a sufficient credit history, or does not have a permanent address. Other consumers prefer anonymity with respect to their transactions. Thus, rather than money being held in a traditional banking account, a customer provides cash to a money transfer company (e.g., Western Union) where it may be transferred (immediately after payment or later in time) to another person. The money paid to the money transfer company is not held in a federally (FDIC) insured or regulated account of the customer, but rather is merely held by the transfer company under a promise to pay the money to a person designated by the customer.
Present money transfer procedures typically involve an individual going to a money transfer location, such as a Western Union office, and giving the customer service representative a variety of personal information. This personal information may include the names and addresses of the sender and recipient, proof of identification, and the amount to be transferred. This information is entered into a money transfer system, and is used to create a record of the money transfer. After the money to be transferred has been collected from the sender, the sender notifies the recipient of the transfer. The recipient usually then goes to a separate money transfer location, such as another Western Union location, to pick up the money. The recipient may be required to provide a money transfer number and/or proof of identification, prior to picking up the money.
Similar processes are also known for making payments to creditors, such as mortgage payments and car payments. For example, the Quick Collect service available from Western Union permits an individual to go to a money transfer agent (or to a Western Union website), provide personal customer information and creditor information (e.g., account number, etc.), and arrange for a payment to the creditor.
Present procedures discourage some customers from using money transfer and other payment systems. People who frequently send money using money transfer systems find that they need to make frequent trips to offices or locations designated for money transfers. Each visit requires that the sender provide personal information to the customer service representative at the time money is deposited. Even if a person does not frequently send money, it can be a burden to transfer money, since the customer has to first locate a money transfer location, and then take the time to visit the money transfer office, and provide the necessary personal information.
Further, such procedures are typically limited to certain kinds of transactions, e.g., payments can be made for money transfers and payments to certain creditors, but are not generally available to use for on-line purchase payments (when the customer does not have a traditional banking account).
There is provided, in accordance with embodiments of the present invention, methods and systems for providing payment instruments that may be purchased by customers at retail and other locations, with a personal identifier (e.g., PIN) provided at the time of purchase, in order to link the payment instrument to personal information (e.g., a profile) of the customer.
In one embodiment, a method for conducting financial transactions includes providing, for purchase at a retail or other location, an instrument (which may be in the form of a card) capable of having a monetary value associated therewith and for use by a customer in performing one or more financial transactions, storing monetary value associated with the instrument in an customer account maintained by a non-banking entity, providing a personal identifier (PIN) that is associated with the instrument, creating a customer profile having personal data and relating to one or more types of financial transactions that may be completed by using the value associated with the instrument, and linking the instrument to the customer profile by associating the PIN with the customer profile.
Among other things, the present invention provides systems and methods for convenient purchase and funding of a payment instrument that can be used by a customer for transferring money to another person or entity. While the scope of the term “transferring money” is intended to include traditional “money transfers” (i.e., the customer as a sender transferring money to a recipient who picks up the money at a money transfer office), other payment transactions are contemplated. For example, the payment instrument may be used to make purchases at participating on-line vendors, make bill payments to creditors, and so forth. The customer may purchase the payment instrument and conduct transactions using the instrument without having to locate a money transfer office. The customer purchases the payment instrument at a convenient location, such as a retail or merchant location. As one example, instruments may be displayed for sale near the checkout lane of a retail grocery store, so that a person making grocery purchases may conveniently select an instrument and provide it along with other purchases/grocery items to the clerk for purchase at checkout. No personal information needs to be provided to the retail clerk to purchase the instrument, and the price of the instrument may be simply added to the total price of all items being purchased at the store.
It should be appreciated that the term “instrument” is used herein in its broadest sense, and may be implemented in many different tangible and intangible forms. For example, it could include (but is not limited to) a card-like structure (as illustrated in
In one embodiment, the payment instruments each have a displayed face value or denomination, say $25, so that the customer knows the purchase price when the instrument is selected. A service or money transfer fee may also be displayed on the instrument, which may be added to the face value for the total purchase price. However, the instrument need not have a face value, but rather may be loaded with a monetary amount selected by the customer at the time of purchase. The instrument package carries product identification (ID) information or data, e.g., in the form of a UPC code, that can be scanned and read at the POS terminal. Other forms of product ID could be employed, such as SKUs, printed product numbers and so forth, which may be manually entered by the clerk at the POS terminal, or product ID data electronically stored on a magnetic stripe or smart card chip that may be read at the POS terminal. The instrument could also incorporate an RFID (Radio Frequency Identity Device) that electronically transmits product data. The product data in each of these examples identifies the product and its face value (if applicable) in order to facilitate purchase of the instrument, and also to facilitate, if appropriate, collection of payment instrument data that can be printed on a receipt along with any other items being purchased at the store.
In order for the customer to activate (or fulfill) the payment instrument for use, a personal identifier is provided to the customer. In some embodiments, the personal identifier is a PIN (personal identification number) that may appear somewhere on the instrument (e.g., where it is not accessible until after purchase). In other embodiments, the PIN is issued to the customer at the time of purchase (e.g., printed on a receipt). The PIN can be later used by the customer, at a place and time convenient to that customer, to associate the value of the instrument with personal profile information of the customer. As should be appreciated, the personal identifier or PIN could be any unique identifier (e.g., a string of numbers, letters or other characters) or set of identifiers.
The association of the PIN with a personal profile of the customer may be done in a number of different ways, to suit the convenience of the customer. In some embodiments, this may be done later (after purchase of the instrument) by the customer using a telephone (e.g., from the convenience of the customer's home) to call a money transfer provider and simply give the PIN and the necessary personal information to a customer service representative (e.g., name and address of customer, and if a money transfer to an individual is the desired transaction, then also the name of recipient, pick-up location, and so forth). Among other possibilities, the call could also be handled by an automated Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system using the key pad of a phone and/or voice responses in order to provide the PIN and any required personal information. In other embodiments, the customer (sender) can use a personal computer, PDA, wireless phone, WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) enabled phone or other terminal to enter required information at an internet website operated by the money transfer provider. In yet other embodiments, personal information could be entered at a self-service terminal (e.g., ATM) at a publicly accessible location. Of course, the personal information could also be presented in person at a money transfer office.
In some embodiments of the invention, when the customer desires to use the instrument to transfer money to another person for pick-up, features are provided to facilitate the receipt of the money by the recipient. This can be accomplished through the use of a control identifier, such as a money transfer control number (MTCN), which is provided to the sender at the time of the money transfer request. As is the case with the PIN, the MTCN may also be any unique identifier (e.g., a string of numbers, letters or other characters), or could be a set of identifiers (e.g., that could be combined together to provide a unique identifier). A money transfer system generates the MTCN for the sender to provide to the recipient, e.g., when the sender informs the recipient that the money is available for pick-up. When the recipient then visits a money transfer location to pick-up the transferred money, the MTCN provides a convenient reference to permit a record of the transfer (including, e.g., the name of the recipient and the amount transferred) to be automatically retrieved at the money transfer location for cash payout to the recipient.
In some embodiments, the customer may have previously established a personal profile, and the customer associates the existing profile with the newly purchased payment instrument. In other embodiments, the customer may reload an existing payment instrument (e.g., at a retail location or by directly interfacing with the money transfer system), and associates the reloaded or new value with profile information by using an existing PIN. In yet other embodiments, the customer may associate multiple profiles with the instrument (e.g., when the instrument amount or value may be used by several different family members and each family member has his/her own profile), or may associate several instruments with a single profile (e.g., to aggregate value from several instruments that individually may not have enough value for a transaction).
Referring to
The front side 110 of the instrument (
The back side 120 of the instrument is illustrated in
In an alternative embodiment seen in
The front of the carrier 102 also has a UPC code 130. The clerk at the retail store may use an optical scanner at a POS terminal to read the UPC code in order to electronically retrieve product information or identification, including pricing information, at the time of purchase.
A slot 104 on carrier 102 permits the instrument 100 to be hung from J hooks or the like at the retail store for convenient display to customers. As should be appreciated, the instruments may be displayed so that instruments having different denominations or face values ($25, $50, $100, etc.) may be selected by the customer. The UPC code 130 will correspond to the face value of the instrument so that the proper face value (and service fee) will be known to the POS terminal after the UPC code is scanned. In embodiments where the instrument does not have a face value, but rather is loaded with any value chosen by the customer when the instrument is purchased, the clerk would not only scan the UPC code 110, but also be prompted at the POS terminal to enter the amount of money that is being loaded onto the instrument by the customer. The clerk would then collect the purchase price (loaded value plus service fee) from the customer. Further, in some embodiments the card can be reloaded (with money) at a retail or other location so that it can continue to be used for money transfers or other transactions after the initial value has been depleted. For example, when a customer desires to reload, the card could be taken to a retail location and the magnetic stripe 124 read to identify the instrument. The amount to be reloaded onto the card could then be tendered by the customer.
In some embodiments, a PIN is issued at a POS terminal when the card is purchased (rather than appearing on the card), and in such case the PIN is printed on a receipt or other document at the POS terminal for later use by the customer.
The system 300 further includes a customer interface 330 through which the customer 304 may access various components of the system, a money transfer host 340 having an associated database 342 for facilitating transfers of money from the customer 304 to a recipient 346 at a remote terminal 344, and other transactions hosts 350 (and associated databases 352) through which other payment transactions (to be described) are facilitated.
Money transfer host 340 is operated by an entity that provides money transfer services and manages money transfer transactions (e.g., Western Union). The money transfer host 340 may be accessed by money transfer representatives or agents through the use of the remote agent terminal 344 (located, for example, at money transfer offices at locations remote from the host 340). Only one terminal 344 is illustrated in
In one embodiment, control host 324 maintains in database 326 the PINs that are associated with each payment instrument available for purchase at a retail location. After a customer purchases an instrument, the customer accesses the control host 324 through the customer interface system 330 and provides the PIN in order to activate the instrument 100. The interface system 330 may provide several different user interfaces for the customer to use. As mentioned earlier, one such interface may use a telephone network, with the interface system 330 employing an Interactive Voice Response system so that a customer may dial into the interface system 330 and then enter the PIN appearing on the instrument in response to a voice prompt. If the customer has not previously created a personal profile, the customer may then be prompted to enter personal information (the personal profile thus created by the customer will be described below in conjunction with.
Alternatively, the interface system 330 may include a web-based application, which the customer accesses using the internet and which provides instructions and data entry displays for entering the PIN and personal data. Other methods for providing the PIN and personal data are also possible, such as the customer visiting a money transfer office and providing the PIN in person (especially for customers who are uncomfortable using a telephone or web-based system).
In some embodiments, PINs are issued at the time of purchase (rather than being printed on the instrument 100), and in such case the database 326 associated with the control host 324 stores PINs to be issued to customers. Those PINs stored in database 326 are periodically assigned as needed to the retail host 310, where they are in turn made available for issuance to customers purchasing money transfer instruments. Thus, either at regular intervals (e.g., at the beginning of each day) or upon request of the host 310 when its supply of PINs is low or depleted, PINs within database 326 are downloaded through host 324 and retail host 310 for storage in database 312. Thereafter, when a UPC code is scanned for an instrument at one of the POS terminals 302, the retail host provides a PIN corresponding to that UPC code to the POS terminal where, for example, it may be printed on a receipt at a printer 303 (
Once the instrument 100 has been activated, the customer may conduct a number of different transactions at interface 330. For example, if a money transfer is desired, the customer may use the customer interface system 330 to provide information regarding the recipient, which information is supplied to the money transfer host 340. The amount of the money to be transferred (if less than the total of the amount loaded onto the payment instrument 100) may be deducted from the balance maintained on the payment instrument (at control host 324), and is stored at the money transfer host 340. Money transfer host 340 provides a MTCN to the customer at the interface (either directly or through control host 324), which can then be provided by the customer to the intended recipient. 346. The recipient visits a money transfer office and provides the MCTN (along with appropriate identification) to an agent at the remote terminal 344 in order to receive the transferred money.
In a similar manner, other transaction may be conducted by the customer 304 at the interface 330. For example, if the customer has made arrangements for paying bills to a creditor (either directly or through 3rd party payment service), such creditor or service may operate one of the hosts 350, and the bill payment can be requested at interface 330. The amount of the bill payment can be deducted from the amount loaded onto the payment instrument 100 and maintained at host 324, and then also credited to an account (for the creditor) maintained at the appropriate host 350. The account maintained at the host 350 may be a banking account of the creditor, with an ACH transfer made directly from a banking account maintained by the operator of control host 324 when the payment is requested by the customer.
As another example, if the customer desires to make a purchase on-line, the customer uses interface 330 to request such payment and identify either the on-line vendor or a third party payment service to whom such payment is to be made. The payment is deducted from the balance maintained for the payment instrument at control host 324, and is transmitted to the host maintained by the vendor. In some instances, an MTCN or the like may be issued by the control host 324 or one of the other hosts 350, and provided to the customer at the interface 330, to confirm that payment has been transferred. Such MCTN may be required by the on-line vendor from the customer before shipment of the purchased goods (so the vendor is assured that payment has been made).
The customer then separately uses (e.g., later in time) the customer interface 330 (
Using the customer interface 330 (
As seen in
As an example, if the customer desires to transfer money to a previous recipient, the customer may select that recipient (e.g., “My Mom”) at location 732. The profile for “My Mom” would be displayed (not seen in
While a detailed description of presently preferred embodiments of the invention have been given above, various alternatives, modifications, and equivalents will be apparent to those skilled in the art without varying from the spirit of the invention. Therefore, the above description should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention, which is defined by the appended claims.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/781,252 filed Mar. 9, 2006, entitled “ELECTRONIC PAYMENT INSTRUMENT SYSTEM AND METHOD.” This application also is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/240,755, filed Sep. 30, 2005, entitled “Money Transfer System And Method,” and a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/132,710, filed May 18, 2005, entitled “Money Transfer Cards, Systems And Methods,” the complete disclosures of which are herein incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60781252 | Mar 2006 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 11240755 | Sep 2005 | US |
Child | 11683977 | Mar 2007 | US |
Parent | 11132710 | May 2005 | US |
Child | 11683977 | Mar 2007 | US |