SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DETERMINING REGULATIONS GOVERNING FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS CONDUCTED OVER A NETWORK
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.
1 . A system for processing a financial transaction conducted with an online merchant, the system comprising:
a payment service provider module configured for:
receiving a request to transfer funds from a customer account to an online merchant, the request comprising a first location associated with the customer's address and a second location of a computing device that generated the request;
in response to receiving the request, comparing the first location, the second location, and a location of the online merchant with a list of locations that regulate the transfer of funds to the online merchant;
in response to the first location, the second location, or the location of the online merchant matching a location on the list of locations, determining whether one or more regulatory authorities regulate the transfer of funds from the customer account to the online merchant in the first location, the second location, or the location of the online merchant; and
in response to determining that the one or more regulatory authorities regulate the transfer of funds to the online merchant in the first location, the second location, or the location of the online merchant, notifying one or more of the customer, the merchant, or a bank associated with an account of the customer associated with the financial transaction of one or more types of regulations to which the transfer of funds is subject,
wherein the one or more types of regulations comprise one or more of a prohibition of the transfer, a limitation on the transfer, or a tax on the transfer.
2 . The system of claim 1 wherein the second location is associated with an Internet protocol address issued to the computing device that generated the request.
3 . A system for processing a financial transaction conducted with an online merchant, the system comprising:
a payment service provider module configured for:
receiving a request to conduct a financial transaction between a customer account and an online merchant, the request comprising a first location associated with the customer's address and a second location of a computing device that generated the request;
in response to receiving the request, comparing the first location, the second location, and the location of the merchant with a list of locations that regulate financial transactions conducted with the online merchant;
in response to the first location, the second location, or the location of the merchant matching a location on the list of locations, determining whether one or more regulatory authorities regulate financial transactions conducted with the online merchant in the first location, the second location, or the location of the online merchant; and
in response to determining that the one or more regulatory authorities regulate financial transactions in the first location, the second location, or the location of the merchant, notifying one or more of the customer, the merchant, or a bank associated with an account of the customer associated with the financial transaction of a type of regulation to which the financial transaction is subject.
4 . The system of claim 3 wherein the payment services provider module is further configured for preventing the financial transaction from being conducted with the merchant in response to determining that the one or more regulatory authorities regulate financial transactions conducted with the online merchant in the first location, the second location, or the location of the online merchant.
5 . The system of claim 3 wherein the payment services provider module is further configured for notifying one or more of the online merchant or the bank associated with the customer's account in response to determining that the one or more regulatory authorities regulate financial transactions conducted with the online merchant in the first location, the second location, or the location of the online merchant.
6 . The system of claim 3 wherein the financial transaction is a request to place a gambling bet with the online merchant.
7 . The system of claim 3 wherein the financial transaction is a request to transfer funds to the online merchant.
8 . The system of claim 3 wherein the financial transaction is a request for a payout resulting from one or more gambling bets placed with the online merchant.
9 . A method for processing a financial transaction conducted with an online merchant, the method comprising the steps of:
receiving a request to conduct a financial transaction between a customer account and an online merchant, the request comprising a first location associated with the customer's address and a second location of a computing device that generated the request;
in response to receiving the request, comparing the first location, the second location, and the location of the merchant with a list of locations that regulate financial transactions conducted with the online merchant;
in response to the first location, the second location, or the location of the merchant matching a location on the list of locations, determining whether one or more regulatory authorities regulate financial transactions conducted with the online merchant in the first location, the second location, or the location of the online merchant; and
in response to determining that the one or more regulatory authorities regulate financial transactions in the first location, the second location, or the location of the merchant, notifying one or more of the customer, the merchant, or a bank associated with an account of the customer associated with the financial transaction of a type of regulation to which the financial transaction is subject.