Systems and methods for sharing excess profits

Abstract

Systems and methods for trading commodity, an item or instrument are provided. The market prices and trading may be monitored to detect a spike in the market price or artificially high market price. Excess profits resulting from the sale at an artificially high market price may be distributed to market participants based upon the participant's trading record in the market or upon some other suitable method.

1 . (canceled) 
     
     
         2 . A electronic trading system comprising:
 a communication link coupling the electronic trading system as an electronic trading network platform, over a communication network, with a plurality of networked computing devices which are communicatively coupled with one another over the communication network; and   a computing device configured to:   receive bids and offers for a traded instrument or item from at least one of the networked computing devices over the communication network and the communication link;   populate, over the communication network, interfaces respectively of the networked computing devices with information indicating available amounts of the traded instrument or item available at a bid price and an offer price;   automatically in response to a selection of the traded instrument through a first interface of a first computing device of the networked computing devices received over the communication network, update the first interface, over the communication network, to present an order entry interface populated with information representing the bid price and offer price, in which the order entry interface includes a buy button, a sell button, a cancel buy button, a cancel sell button, a bid button, an offer button, a cancel bid button, a cancel offer button, a cancel all button, a cancel all instruments button, a price entry field, a price up button, a price down button, a bid price up button, a bid price down button, a size entry field, a size up button, a size down button, an offer price up button, a offer price down button, and a numeric keypad;   receive, from the first computing device of the networked computing devices over the communication network, a trading order for the traded instrument or item in response to order information being entered into the order entry interface;   monitor trading prices for the traded instrument or item based at least on the received bids and offers;   continuously acquire the monitored trading prices, and continuously generate, from the acquired monitored trading prices, display data to update a graphical user interface of the electronic trading system to indicate the acquired monitored trading prices;   determine a benchmark trading price based on a weighted average of the monitored trading prices;   compare the benchmark trading price to a selected trading price selected from the monitored trading prices, to determine a difference between the benchmark trading price and the selected trading price, in which the selected trading price includes a price for a trade that involves a first market participant selling the traded instrument or item;   determine that the difference exceeds a defined difference level;   in response to determining that the difference exceeds the defined difference level, determine an amount of excess profits based on the difference; and   in response to determining that the difference exceeds the defined difference level, facilitate a distribution of at least a portion of the amount of excess profits to a plurality of second market participants based on the plurality of second market participant selling, at least at one time, the traded instrument or item through the electronic trading system, in which the distribution is in proportion to a market share in the instrument or item sold by each of the plurality of market participants.   
     
     
         3 . The electronic trading system of  claim 2 , in which the at least one second market participant includes a plurality of market participants. 
     
     
         4 . The electronic trading system of  claim 2 , in which the computing device is configured to facilitate distribution in proportion to a share of excess profits obtained from the second market participant. 
     
     
         5 . The electronic trading system of  claim 2 , wherein the determining the amount of excess profits comprises determining the amount of excess profits based at least in part on a total value of the item or instrument traded at the selected trading price. 
     
     
         6 . The electronic trading system of  claim 2 , in which monitoring the trading prices comprises monitoring a trading price for one of a trading price of electricity, natural gas, energy, and oil. 
     
     
         7 . The electronic trading system of  claim 2 , in which the distribution is in proportion to a share of sales in the instrument or item made by the second market participant. 
     
     
         8 . A method comprising:
 receiving, by an electronic trading system as an electronic trading network platform, over a communication network that couples the electronic trading system to a plurality of networked computing devices which are communicatively coupled with one another over the communication network, bids and offers for a traded instrument or item;   populating, over the communication network, interfaces respectively of the networked computing devices with information indicating available amounts of the traded instrument or item available at a bid price and an offer price;   automatically in response to a selection of the traded instrument through a first interface of a first computing device of the networked computing devices received over the communication network, updating the first interface, over the communication network, to present an order entry interface populated with information representing the bid price and offer price, in which the order entry interface includes a buy button, a sell button, a cancel buy button, a cancel sell button, a bid button, an offer button, a cancel bid button, a cancel offer button, a cancel all button, a cancel all instruments button, a price entry field, a price up button, a price down button, a bid price up button, a bid price down button, a size entry field, a size up button, a size down button, an offer price up button, a offer price down button, and a numeric keypad;   receiving, from the first computing device of the networked computing devices over the communication network, a trading order for the traded instrument or item in response to order information being entered into the order entry interface;   monitoring, by the electronic trading system, trading prices for a traded instrument or item based at least on the received bids and offers;   continuously acquiring the monitored trading prices, and continuously generating, from the acquired monitored trading prices, display data to update a graphical user interface of the electronic trading system to indicate the acquired monitored trading prices;   determining, by the electronic trading system, a benchmark trading price based on a weighted average of the monitored trading prices;   comparing, by the electronic trading system, the benchmark trading price to a selected trading price selected from the monitored trading prices, to determine a difference between the benchmark trading price and the selected trading price, in which the selected trading price includes a price for a trade that involves a first market participant selling the traded instrument or item;   determining, by the electronic trading system, that the difference exceeds a defined difference level;   in response to determining that the difference exceeds the defined difference level determining, by the electronic trading system, an amount of excess profits based on the difference; and   in response to determining that the difference exceeds the defined difference level, facilitate, by the trading system, a distribution of at least a portion of the amount of excess profits to a plurality of second market participants based on the plurality of second market participant selling, at least at one time, the traded instrument or item through the electronic trading system, in which the distribution is in proportion to a market share in the instrument or item sold by each of the plurality of market participants.