Abstract: Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, for social networking services integrated with gift card services. In general, a profile of a member of a social networking service may be presented with one or more merchant credit services for prepaid merchant account credit, data characterizing a request to provide a credit service from the merchant credit services and a mobile phone number associated with an intended recipient of the first credit service may be received, and a message may be caused to be sent to the mobile phone number, where the message characterizes provision of the first credit service to the intended recipient. Interest in the credit service may be tracked and associated with a loyalty indicator associated with the member.

Abstract: Methods for constructing an estimated depreciated schedule for a patent are disclosed. The steps for constructing this schedule may include: (1) determining a first function which approximately describes the rate of initial increase in expected forward patent citations over time; (2) determining a second function which approximately describes the rate of eventual decay in expected forward patent citations over time; and (3) constructing an estimated depreciation schedule using a calculated decay coefficient derived from said second function.

Abstract: Systems and methods for facilitating payment of a computerized transaction. One method according to an embodiment of the invention includes providing a money transfer system; receiving at the money transfer system an electronic payment request; assigning, by the money transfer system, a unique transaction number to the payment request; determining by the money transfer system a preliminary total amount required from the buyer; determining by the money transfer system a grand total amount; communicating information from the money transfer system to the seller computer system; receiving at the money transfer system a payment notification; communicating a message to the seller computer system that payment associated with the unique transaction number has been received at a payment location; and effecting completion of the electronic payment request by making payment via the money transfer system to the seller.

Abstract: A method and system for investing in an investment fund by at least one investor are provided. The method includes defining at least two tranches of the investment fund, each tranche associated with a tranche risk profile. The method includes, for each investor, receiving an investment amount in each tranche. The method includes calculating a profit/loss for each investor based on the investment amounts, the tranche risk profiles and a performance of the investment fund.

Abstract: In various embodiments, an apparatus includes a processor and a memory. The memory is communicatively coupled to the processor. The memory stores software instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to receive a trading order for a particular quantity of a trading product. The trading order specifies that a first portion of the particular quantity is a displayed quantity and that a second portion of the particular quantity is a reserved quantity. The trading order specifies at least one of a decay rule, a decay interval, a decay rate, decay quantity, and one or more conditions. The software instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to cause the reserved quantity to decay based at least in part on at least one of the decay rule, the decay interval, the decay rate, and the decay quantity, and one or more conditions.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for managing a financial account. The method involves directing a primary transaction request to a holding account controlled by an account owner, evaluating the primary transaction request based on a selected rule to obtain an evaluation, routing the primary transaction request, based on the evaluation, from the holding account to the financial account of a plurality of financial accounts.

Abstract: A computer program that can be installed on a web server to assemble web pages that can be accessed over the Internet by password to prepare financial planning reports for a client. The program takes gross income, subtracts income taxes, subtracts all money put into savings programs, and whatever is left is what the client spends in a given year or month. It further itemizes and subtracts the monthly payments for debt service since these items will be fully amortized or paid off at some point in the future and should not be included in baseline living expenses that will continue through a person's lifetime. The balance left after these calculations are completed represents the individual's current annual living expenses or standard of living that needs to be sustained throughout their lifetime with adjustments for inflation.

Abstract: A system, method and computer program product are provided for e-commerce. In use, a plurality of suppliers are registered. In addition, goods-related information from customers is received, where the goods-related information is associated with goods. Access to the goods-related information by the suppliers is allowed utilizing a network. Further, offers relating to the goods from the suppliers are received utilizing the network, and the customers are informed of the offers. Still yet, a guarantee is provided to the customers regarding a qualification of at least one supplier with respect to a provision or fulfillment of the offer received therefrom. Such guarantee is provided as a function the at least one supplier or at least one action thereof.

Abstract: Ways are provided to allow a credit card issuing financial institution and the card member to customize a credit card account by defining an unlimited number of special-purpose lines of credit, while maintaining the overall risk at or below the overall line of credit. The individual specialized lines of credit share the overall line of credit, where the total amount of credit actually extended to the card member based on one or more of the specialized lines of credit is limited by the overall line of credit. To provide flexibility in allocating credit toward a plurality of different expenses, the sum of all of the individual lines of credit is preferably greater than the overall line of credit. Therefore, numerous special-purpose lines of credit are created for promotional, budgetary, fraud prevention, or other purposes, without negatively affecting the consumer's credit profile and/or credit score.

Abstract: A method and system for processing tax pertaining to a transaction between a seller and buyer. The transaction triggers a tax due to a tax imposing jurisdiction (TIJ). The transaction has been authorized to be financed for the tax due to the TIJ by a financing network. First transaction data fields are received as data that includes an indication of the tax due to the TIJ and is sufficient for determining the tax due to the TIJ. Second transaction data fields are generated as a copy of the first transaction data fields. A tax transaction identification is assigned to the transaction and appended to the second transaction data fields. An audit and verify process is performed on the second transaction data fields. Results of the audit and verify process are merged into the second transaction data fields. The second transaction data fields are transferred to a transaction data warehouse.

Abstract: A system for providing banking services by use of a mobile communication system, in which a variety of financial transactions including inquiry of at least one financial account of at least one financial institution, transfer and remittance, and loan and its interest payment are processed by the mobile communication system. The system includes: the mobile communication system, provided with an integrated circuit (IC) card and a memory device to which a banking application is installed, for transmitting and receiving data by wireless, the IC card being stored with information on a personal identification number (PIN) and information related to financial accounts including a loan account.

Abstract: In an embodiment, revenue loss functions associated with business units are determined and waste credit constraints associated with the business units are received. A recommended waste credit purchase amount and recommended waste credit reduction amounts associated with the business units are calculated by minimizing a sum of the revenue loss functions and a purchase function, subject to the waste credit constraints, a purchase constraint, and a reduction goal constraint. In various embodiments, the recommended waste credit purchase amount and the recommended waste credit reduction amounts are presented, the amount of waste credits specified by the recommended waste credit purchase amount are purchased, and the business units reduce their waste emissions by their respective recommended waste credit reduction amounts. In an embodiment, the minimization is perfumed via a quadratic programming algorithm.

Abstract: A system (and method, and method for deploying computing infrastructure) for identifying a customer at risk of revenue change (e.g., revenue loss or revenue gain) including computing a risk score based on a plurality of risk factors associated with the customer.

Abstract: A system is provided for leasing motor vehicles to credit challenged consumers or consumers that do not qualify for conventional financing. The system utilizes a short term prepaid lease in combination with a device utilizing microprocessor technology installed in the motor vehicle to encourage payment. The consumer pays in advance to use the motor vehicle for a predetermined lease period. If the consumer does not make the prepayment, the device installed in the vehicle prevents the vehicle from operating. The system is used to make a determination as to the amount of a weekly payment a credit challenged consumer (“Consumer”) can afford. Using the weekly payment amount, the system then extrapolates the value of a vehicle appropriate for the Consumer's payment ability. Once the lease has been executed, a predetermined operating time is loaded into the device, which is connected to the vehicle's ignition system.

Abstract: Process and system for optimizing one of uploading and downloading of at least one file through at least one lender in multiplexed gateway architecture. The process includes identifying available lenders coupled to a multiplexed gateway within a vicinity of a borrower, selecting an optimization criterion, and selecting a number of the identified available lenders based upon the selected optimization criterion. The method also includes dividing at least one file to be one of uploaded and downloaded into parts corresponding to the number of selected lenders, and assigning a part of the at least one file to each selected lender.

Abstract: Systems and techniques for implementing an exception handling framework are described. An exception register is configured to store multiple error messages and rules comprising instructions for responding to the error messages. An exception handler in communication with first and second process components is configured to: detect an error message generated by at least one of the first and second process components; determine that the error message is stored in the exception register; and respond according to a rule corresponding to the error message. The rule uses information pertaining to a business scenario being implemented in conjunction with the first and second process components, and the business scenario is at least partially unavailable to at least one of the first and second process components.

Abstract: A system for processing transaction data is provided. The system includes a substitute draft system that receives a retrieval request and generates a substitute draft in response to the retrieval request. The system also includes a merchant interface that is connected to the retrieval system. The merchant interface generates a merchant request in response to the retrieval request. The system thus allows a substitute draft to be generated in response to the retrieval request that may eliminate the need for a merchant response with a sales draft to the request. The system provides for higher and more efficient completion of retrieval requests by ensuring that such retrieval requests receive at least a substitute draft response. By providing at least a substitute draft response to the card user, a chargeback for no response is avoided.

Abstract: Systems and methods of allocating transactions among business objects are described. Allocation is accomplished using a multi-phase process. In a first phase, allocation of the transactions among a set of business objects is attempted. In a subsequent phase, allocation of transactions that were either unallocated, under-allocated, or over-allocated in the first phase is determined. The second phase includes using a set of allocation rules to identify business objects configured to manually determine allocation of the unallocated, under-allocated, or over-allocated transactions. The invention is applicable to a variety of business objects including people, organizations, accounts, tasks, or the like.

Abstract: An integration device retrieves credit reports, and/or other financial data that is available from one or more credit sources, for consumers and extracts financial account information from the credit reports. The integration device may then format and/or translates the account information into a format that is usable by a particular consumer's personal finance software and communicates the account information to the personal finance software. Accordingly, the personal finance software is provided with information regarding each of a plurality of financial accounts that are associated with the consumer so that the account information may be populated in the personal finance software with minimal effort by the consumer.

Abstract: In a computer system and a computer-implemented method for determining a damage index indicative of damage caused by an earthquake to a portfolio of objects associated with a geographical area, local portfolio replacement value indices are stored assigned to object or grid coordinates of the geographical area. For each coordinate having a local portfolio replacement value index assigned to it, a local damage index is calculated from location, depth, and magnitude data related to the earthquake and from the local portfolio replacement value index, using local vulnerability and attenuation parameters. The damage index is calculated by aggregating the local damage indices for the grid coordinates. For any size of the geographical area and for any resolution of the grid, a damage index reflecting the geographical distribution of the portfolio objects can be determined, without need for a network of seismological measurement stations distributed in the geographical area.