Abstract: A computer system buys and sells virtual shares on behalf of investors, usually investing small sums, in order to reduce the dealing costs for small transactions. The system thus maintains a notional level of shares held on behalf of all the investors who participate in the system. A monitoring process runs continually checking exposure on individual shares, and the system buys and sells blocks of real shares in the market to keep the exposure to individual companies at an acceptable level. By buying and selling larger blocks of real shares on a more infrequent basis than the virtual share transactions, the smaller transactions are effectively consolidated together, with associated cost savings.

Abstract: A method for modelling loans comprises allowing a user to enter parameters relevant to the loan, including the loan amount, loan term and interest rate, and then visually displaying information indicating the repayments due over the term of the loan. The user can also select one or more of the following options: low-start or fast-start loans; regularly increasing repayments; lump sum repayments at specified dates; reduced repayments for a specified period; and variable repayments over different months of the year. The information indicating the repayments due over the term of the loan is displayed in some easily-understandable visual representation, such as a graph, bar chart, or table.

Abstract: A method of providing self service banking to a customer, e.g. over the Internet or through interactive television). The customer is presented with a display containing icons representing a number of accounts, and icons representing money in a selected account. When the customer transfers money from the currently selected account to another account, this transfer is displayed graphically by one or more of the money icons moving from the selected account to the destination account. The transfer may be made by dragging and dropping the money icons on to the icon representing the destination account, or by selecting the amount to transfer and the destination account and then confirming the transfer.