Process of and system for advancing credit for cash collections

Abstract

A process for providing bank credit to retailers for cash collections that are carried out during retailers' normal business operations. The process entails a retailer collecting cash over a period of time, such as over a single or multiple business days, generally in exchange for goods and/or services, depositing the collected cash into one or more electronic safes disposed at the retailer's location or locations, calculating at a designated time, such as the end of day at each location, a total amount of cash that has been deposited into the retailer's safes over such period of time, and electronically transmitting data files that identify the calculated total amounts of cash accepted by the retailer over the period of time. The retailer is credited, for example, by a bank, with the total cash deposits as reported by the electronic safes at the end of each business day. The process advantageously makes funds readily available and improves cash flow to retailers who take-in cash as part of their normal business operations.

1 - 2 . (canceled)  
     
     
         3 . The process of  claim 6 , wherein arranging for the retailer to be credited by the bank occurs before the cash deposited into the safe is physically taken out of the safe.  
     
     
         4 . The process of  claim 6 , wherein arranging for the retailer to be credited by the bank occurs before the cash deposited into the safe is physically delivered to a financial institute.  
     
     
         5 . The process of  claim 6 , further comprising the steps of transferring the cash deposited into the safe to a financial institute, verifying the amount of cash to produce a verified amount; and adjusting the credit previously provided to the retailer based on differences, if any, between the verified amount and the calculated total amount of cash deposited into the safe as identified in the transmitted data file.  
     
     
         6 . A process for providing credit to a retailer for cash collections, comprising the steps of: 
 collecting cash by a retailer over a plurality of business days;    depositing by the retailer the collected cash into a safe disposed at the retailer;    calculating, by the safe, at an end of day for each of the business days, a total amount of cash deposited into the safe between the end of day of a business day preceding the respective business day and the end of day for the respective business day;    electronically transmitting, at the end of day of each of the business days, a respective data file identifying the respective calculated total amount; and    arranging, on each of the business days, for the retailer to be credited by a bank with the respective calculated total amount identified in the respective electronically transmitted data file.    
     
     
         7 . A process for providing credit to a retailer for cash collections, comprising the steps of: 
 collecting cash by a retailer over a plurality of business days;    depositing by the retailer the collected cash into a safe disposed at the retailer;    calculating, by the safe, at an end of day for each of the business days, a total amount of cash deposited into the safe between the end of day of a business day preceding the respective business day and the end of day for the respective business day;    electronically transmitting, at the end of day of each of the business days, a respective data file identifying the respective calculated total amount to enable for the respective crediting of the retailer by a bank with the respective calculated total amount;    receiving by a facility, on each of the business days, the respective electronically transmitted data file; and    arranging, on each of the business days, by the facility for the retailer to be credited by the bank with the respective calculated total amount.    
     
     
         8 . The process of  claim 7 , wherein the cash deposited into the safe over the plurality of business days is not withdrawn from the safe over the plurality of business days.  
     
     
         9 . The process of  claim 7 , further comprising picking up the cash deposited into the safe in accordance with a pickup schedule; and wherein the end of day does not coincide with the pickup schedule.  
     
     
         10 . The process of  claim 6 , wherein each data file identifies the calculated total amount broken down by business day, including a total amount of cash deposited into the safe between the end of day of the preceding business day through an end of the preceding business day, and a total amount of cash deposited into the safe between a beginning of the respective business day and the end of day for the respective business day.  
     
     
         11 . A process for providing credit to a retailer for cash collections, comprising the steps of: collecting cash by a retailer over a plurality of business days; 
 depositing by the retailer the collected cash into a safe disposed at the retailer;    calculating, by the safe, at an end of day for each of the business days, a total amount of cash deposited into the safe between the end of day of a business day preceding the respective business day and the end of day for the respective business day;    electronically transmitting, at the end of day of each of the business days, a respective data file identifying the respective calculated total amount to enable for the respective crediting of the retailer by a bank with the respective calculated total amount, wherein each data file identifies the calculated total amount broken down by business day, including a total amount of cash deposited into the safe between the end of day of the preceding business day through an end of the preceding business day, and a total amount of cash deposited into the safe between a beginning of the respective business day and the end of day for the respective business day;    receiving by a facility, on each of the business days, the respective electronically transmitted data file; and    arranging by the facility for the retailer to be credited by the bank on a business day basis based on the respective calculated total amounts identified in the respective electronically transmitted data file.    
     
     
         12 . The process of  claim 11 , further comprising the step of providing the retailer with a report identifying amounts of credit provided to the retailer on a business day basis.  
     
     
         13 . A process for providing credit to a retailer for cash collections, comprising the steps of: 
 collecting cash by a retailer at a plurality of retailer locations over a plurality of business days;    depositing by the retailer cash collected at each of the retailer locations into safes respectively disposed at the retailer locations;    calculating by each respective safe, at an end of day for each of the business days, a respective total amount of cash deposited into the respective safe at each of the retailer locations during the respective business day;    electronically transmitting, for each of the retailer locations, at the end of day of each of the business days, a respective data file identifying the respective calculated total amount deposited at each of the retailer locations during the respective business day;    receiving by a facility all of the electronically transmitted data files; and    arranging, on each of the business days, by the facility for the retailer to be provided by a bank with a total credit corresponding to a sum of the calculated total amounts of cash deposited into the safes at each of the retailer locations during the respective business day as identified in the received data files.    
     
     
         14 . The process of  claim 13 , wherein arranging by the facility for the retailer to be provided by the bank with a total credit occurs before the cash deposited into the safes are physically removed from the safes.  
     
     
         15 . The process of  claim 13 , wherein calculating a respective total amount of cash deposited into the respective safe at each of the retailer locations is carried out at a respective designated time for each of the retailer locations, and a designated time for a first of the retailer locations is different from a designated time for a second of the retailer locations.  
     
     
         16 . A system for providing bank credit to a retailer for cash collections, comprising: 
 a safe disposed at a retailer location, cash collected by the retailer at the retailer location over a plurality of business days being deposited into the safe, the safe being adapted to calculate a total amount of cash deposited into the safe for each of the business days, and adapted to electronically transmit, for each of the business days, a data file identifying the calculated total amount of cash deposited into the safe during the respective business day to enable for the crediting, for each of the business days, of the retailer by a bank with the calculated total amount of cash deposited into the safe as identified in the data file.    
     
     
         17 . A system for providing credit to a retailer for cash collections, comprising: 
 a plurality of safes, each of the safes disposed at a respective one of the plurality of locations of the retailer, each of the safes receiving cash collected at a respective one of the locations of the retailer over a plurality of business days, each of the safes being adapted to calculate a respective total amount of cash received by the respective safe for each of said business days and adapted to electronically transmit, on each of said business days, a respective data file identifying the respective calculated total amount of cash received by the safe on the respective business day; and    a facility in electronic communication with each of the safes for receiving all of the electronically transmitted data files, the facility adapted to arrange for the retailer to be provided, on each of said business days, with a total credit corresponding to a sum of the calculated total amounts of cash deposited into the safes at each of the retailer locations on the respective business day as identified in the received data files.    
     
     
         18 . The process of  claim 6 , wherein the retailer is provided with a credit multiple times in a day.  
     
     
         19 . (canceled)  
     
     
         20 . The process of  claim 13 , wherein the retailer is provided with a credit multiple times in a day.  
     
     
         21 . (canceled)  
     
     
         22 . The system of  claim 16 , wherein the safe electronically transmits data files a plurality of times in a day to enable for the crediting of the retailer a plurality of times in said day.