METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FACILITATING PERFORMING PAYMENT OPTION AGGREGATION UTILIZING AN AUTOMATED AUTHENTICATION ENGINE

1 . A method for performing payment option aggregation, the method comprising:

receiving, from an e-commerce platform, a request to complete a transaction, the request comprising device identifying information and a transaction amount;

authenticating a user device utilizing the device identifying information;

identifying one or more payment options, each payment option having an associated payment method associated with at least one of the one or more payment entities, the identification of the one or more payment options comprising:

querying, in real-time, one or more payment entities by providing the authenticated device identification information to the one or more payment entities; and

receiving return information to the querying, the return information indicative of at least one payment option of the one or more payment options;

providing, for display, a descriptor associated with each of a portion of the identified payment options; and

receiving an indication of a selection of at least one payment option.

2 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the authenticating step comprises:

receiving, from the e-commerce platform, an indication of a request received at the e-commerce platform to complete the transaction utilizing a device associated with a user, the indication comprising the device identifying information;

providing a network address to the e-commerce platform, the network address configured to be sent to the device from the e-commerce platform;

receiving, from a second entity, second device identification information, the second device identification information determined upon the device accessing to the network address;

performing a real-time comparison between the device identifying information and second device identification information; and

authenticating the device identifying information if a match is detected between the device identifying information and second device identification information.

3 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the transaction is at least one of a purchase, transfer, or a donation.

4 . The method according to claim 1 , further comprising: determining a subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options.

5 . The method according to claim 1 , where the descriptor does not include a credit card number.

6 . The method according to claim 4 , wherein the subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options comprise predetermined set of one or more credit card companies, payment processors, or banks, each member of the subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options configured to identify known and authorized payment accounts associated with the identifying information.

7 . The method according to claim 1 , further comprising: subsequent to determining the one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options, providing the determined one or more payment entities with the device identifying information and the transaction amount; and receiving a bid amount from a subset of the determined one or more payment entities, the bid amount indicative of a bid amount each of the one or more payment entities would be willing to pay for placement.

8 . The method according to claim 1 , further comprising: subsequent to determining the one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options, providing the determined one or more payment entities with the device identifying information and the transaction amount; and receiving an indication of one or more benefits with which to display in conjunction with an indication of the payment option during placement.

9 . The method according to claim 1 , further comprising: a pre-processing step of opting-in at one or more payment processors, each having one or more associated payment methods.

10 . A computer program product for performing payment option aggregation, the computer program product comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable program code instructions stored therein, the computer-executable program code instructions comprising program code instructions for:

receiving, from an e-commerce platform, a request to complete a transaction, the request comprising device identifying information and a transaction amount;

authenticating a user device utilizing the device identifying information;

identifying one or more payment options, each payment option having an associated payment method associated with at least one of the one or more payment entities, the identification of the one or more payment options comprising:

querying, in real-time, one or more payment entities by providing the authenticated device identification information to the one or more payment entities; and

receiving return information to the querying, the return information indicative of at least one payment option of the one or more payment options;

providing, for display, a descriptor associated with each of a portion of the identified payment options; and

receiving an indication of a selection of at least one payment option.

11 . The computer program product according to claim 10 , wherein the authenticating step comprises:

receiving, from the e-commerce platform, an indication of a request received at the e-commerce platform to complete the transaction utilizing a device associated with a user, the indication comprising the device identifying information;

providing a network address to the e-commerce platform, the network address configured to be sent to the device from the e-commerce platform;

receiving, from a second entity, second device identification information, the second device identification information determined upon the device accessing to the network address;

performing a real-time comparison between the device identifying information and second device identification information; and

authenticating the device identifying information if a match is detected between the device identifying information and second device identification information.

12 . The computer program product according to claim 10 , wherein the transaction is at least one of a purchase, transfer, or a donation.

13 . The computer program product according to claim 10 , wherein the computer-executable program code instructions further comprise program code instructions for: determining a subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options.

14 . The computer program product according to claim 10 , where the descriptor does not include a credit card number.

15 . The computer program product according to claim 13 , wherein the subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options comprise predetermined set of one or more credit card companies, payment processors, or banks, each member of the subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options configured to identify known and authorized payment accounts associated with the identifying information.

16 . The computer program product according to claim 10 , wherein the computer-executable program code instructions further comprise program code instructions for: subsequent to determining the one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options, providing the determined one or more payment entities with the device identifying information and the transaction amount; and receiving a bid amount from a subset of the determined one or more payment entities, the bid amount indicative of a bid amount each of the one or more payment entities would be willing to pay for placement.

17 . The computer program product according to claim 10 , wherein the computer-executable program code instructions further comprise program code instructions for: subsequent to determining the one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options, providing the determined one or more payment entities with the device identifying information and the transaction amount; and receiving an indication of one or more benefits with which to display in conjunction with an indication of the payment option during placement.

18 . The computer program product according to claim 10 , wherein the computer-executable program code instructions further comprise program code instructions for: a pre-processing step of opting-in at one or more payment processors, each having one or more associated payment methods.

19 . An apparatus for performing payment option aggregation, the apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to at least:

receive, from an e-commerce platform, a request to complete a transaction, the request comprising device identifying information and a transaction amount;

authenticate a user device utilizing the device identifying information;

identifying one or more payment options, each payment option having an associated payment method associated with at least one of the one or more payment entities, the identification of the one or more payment options comprising:

querying, in real-time, one or more payment entities by providing the authenticated device identification information to the one or more payment entities; and

receiving return information to the querying, the return information indicative of at least one payment option of the one or more payment options;

provide, for display, a descriptor associated with each of a portion of the identified payment options; and

receive an indication of a selection of at least one payment option.

20 . The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the authentication comprises:

receiving, from the e-commerce platform, an indication of a request received at the e-commerce platform to complete the transaction utilizing the user device associated with a user, the indication comprising the device identifying information;

providing a network address to the e-commerce platform, the network address configured to be sent to the device from the e-commerce platform;

receiving, from a second entity, second device identification information, the second device identification information determined upon the device accessing to the network address;

performing a real-time comparison between the device identifying information and second device identification information; and

authenticating the device identifying information if a match is detected between the device identifying information and second device identification information.

21 . The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the transaction is at least one of a purchase, transfer, or a donation.

22 . The apparatus according to claim 19 , the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to: determine a subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options.

23 . The apparatus according to claim 19 , where the descriptor does not include a credit card number.

24 . The apparatus according to claim 22 , wherein the subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options comprise predetermined set of one or more credit card companies, payment processors, or banks, each member of the subset of one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options configured to identify known and authorized payment accounts associated with the identifying information.

25 . The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to: subsequent to determining the one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options, provide the determined one or more payment entities with the device identifying information and the transaction amount; and receive a bid amount from a subset of the determined one or more payment entities, the bid amount indicative of a bid amount each of the one or more payment entities would be willing to pay for placement.

26 . The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to: subsequent to determining the one or more payment entities from which to solicit payment options, provide the determined one or more payment entities with the device identifying information and the transaction amount; and receiving an indication of one or more benefits with which to display in conjunction with an indication of the payment option during placement.

27 . The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, with the processor, cause the apparatus to: perform a pre-processing step of opting-in at one or more payment processors, each having one or more associated payment methods.