Methods and Systems for Routing Payment Transactions

Abstract

Methods and systems for routing payment transactions electronically involve interrogating by computer logic each payment transaction received by a payments interface processor to identify a payment destination and a payment source and to determine, according to pre-defined parameters, whether the payment transaction is eligible for processing via an internal payment transaction processor of the financial institution that minimizes processing costs. Eligible payment transactions may be routed, for example, to an internal debit or credit card processor or ACH processor, and ineligible payment transactions may be routed to external card processing networks.

1 - 69 . (canceled) 
     
     
         70 . A method for routing payment transactions electronically, comprising:
 interrogating, by a payments interface processor, each of a plurality of payment transactions received by a financial institution to identify credit or debit card payment transactions and automated clearing house payment transactions having both a payment source account and a payment destination account with the financial institution; and   routing, by the payments interface processor, said identified credit or debit card payment transactions to an internal credit or debit card payment transaction processor of the financial institution and said identified automated clearing house payment transactions to an internal automated clearing house payment transaction processor of the financial institution.   
     
     
         71 . The method of  claim 70 , further comprising processing said identified credit or debit card payment transactions by the internal credit or debit card payment transaction processor of the financial institution and said identified automated clearing house payment transactions by the internal automated clearing house payment transaction processor of the financial institution. 
     
     
         72 . The method of  claim 70 , further comprising interrogating each of said plurality of payment transactions to identify credit or debit card payment transactions and automated clearing house payment transactions payment transactions not having both a payment source account and a payment destination account with the financial institution. 
     
     
         73 . The method of  claim 72 , further comprising routing said payment transactions not having both a payment source account and a payment destination account with the financial institution to a payment transaction processor other than the internal credit or debit card payment transaction processor of the financial institution or the internal automated clearing house payment transaction processor of the financial institution. 
     
     
         74 . The method of  claim 70 , further comprising receiving at least some of the plurality of payment transactions entered on a digital communication device. 
     
     
         75 . The method of  claim 70 , further comprising receiving at least some of the plurality of payment transactions via a merchant website. 
     
     
         76 . The method of  claim 70 , wherein interrogating each of the plurality of payment transactions further comprises interrogating each of the plurality of payment transactions to identify credit or debit card payment transactions and automated clearing house payment transactions having a pre-paid merchant demand deposit account with the financial institution as the payment destination account. 
     
     
         77 . The method of  claim 70 , wherein interrogating each of the plurality of payment transactions further comprises interrogating each of the plurality of payment transactions based at least in part on a directory of payment source accounts. 
     
     
         78 . The method of  claim 77 , wherein interrogating each of the plurality of payment transactions further comprises interrogating each of the plurality of payment transactions based at least in part on a look-up table of consumer accounts of the directory of payment source accounts. 
     
     
         79 . The method of  claim 77 , wherein interrogating each of the plurality of payment transactions further comprises interrogating each of the plurality of payment transactions based at least in part on a look-up table of mobile device numbers or email addresses linked to respective debit card accounts, credit card accounts, or demand deposit accounts in the directory of payment source accounts. 
     
     
         80 . The method of  claim 71 , further comprising settling said identified debit card payment transactions by debiting said payment source accounts with the financial institution and crediting said payment destination accounts with the financial institution. 
     
     
         81 . The method of  claim 71 , further comprising settling said identified credit card payment transactions both as a merchant acquirer of the credit card payment transaction and an issuer of a credit card account by the financial institution. 
     
     
         82 . A system for routing payment transactions electronically, comprising:
 a payments interface processor coupled to memory, wherein the payments interface processor is programmed to:
 interrogate each of a plurality of payment transactions received by a financial institution to identify credit or debit card payment transactions and automated clearing house payment transactions having both a payment source account and a payment destination account with the financial institution; and 
 route said identified credit or debit card payment transactions to an internal credit or debit card payment transaction processor of the financial institution and said identified automated clearing house payment transactions to an internal automated clearing house payment transaction processor of the financial institution. 
   
     
     
         83 . A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium with an executable program stored thereon, wherein the program instructs a first party payments interface processor to perform the following steps:
 interrogating each of a plurality of payment transactions received by a financial institution to identify credit or debit card payment transactions and automated clearing house payment transactions having both a payment source account and a payment destination account with the financial institution; and   routing said identified credit or debit card payment transactions to an internal credit or debit card payment transaction processor of the financial institution and said identified automated clearing house payment transactions to an internal automated clearing house payment transaction processor of the financial institution.