US20140337183A1 - Online processing for offshore business transactions - Google Patents

Abstract

A method and system for processing offshore online transaction use an intermediary platform to conduct foreign currency exchange on behalf of a buyer and an offshore seller. The method allows the buyer to purchase a product of an offshore merchant website using a local currency through the intermediary platform. The buyer places an order at the offshore merchant website, which sends an order request to the intermediary platform. The intermediary platform calculates the purchase amount in local currency, and exchanges the local currency amount provided by the user into an equivalent foreign currency amount through a financial platform, and sends a transaction message indicating successful payment to the offshore merchant website to allow shipping of the product. The intermediary platform periodically conducts accounting and profit sharing operations with the offshore merchant website.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS
• This application is a continuation of, and claims priority to, co-pending, commonly-owned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/077,570 filed Nov. 12, 2013, entitled “ONLINE PROCESSING FOR OFFSHORE BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS”, which claims priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/600,797, issued on Nov. 18, 2009 under U.S. Pat. No. 8,612,344, entitled “ONLINE PROCESSING FOR OFFSHORE BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS”, which patent is a national stage patent of international patent application PCT/US09/54637 filed Aug. 21, 2009, entitled “ONLINE PROCESSING FOR OFFSHORE BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS”, which claims priority from Chinese patent application, Application No. 200810130988.8, filed Aug. 21, 2008, entitled “ONLINE PROCESSING FOR OFFSHORE BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS”, which applications are hereby incorporated in their entirety by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
• The present disclosure relates to the fields of online transaction, and particularly to methods and systems for online transaction processing for offshore transactions.
BACKGROUND
• Along with the development of the Internet and maturity of encryption technologies such as digital signature, electronic commerce has been expanding globally at a tremendous pace. Many successful companies have grown up using electronic commerce as the primary method of business operation. The new business methods developed in context of e-commerce have completely revolutionized the existing business mode.
• FIG. 1 shows a schematic structural diagram of a generic example of an existingonline transaction system10. Thesystem10 includesmerchant11,intermediary platform12,bankcard subsystem13, anduser14.User14 purchases a product ofmerchant11, and makes an online payment usingbankcard subsystem13. Merchant11 ships the product touser14. Merchant11 andbankcard subsystem13 conduct account reconciliation and account remittance on a regular basis. Functions that are achieved bybankcard subsystem13 may be integrated intointermediary platform12.
• AliPay is an example ofintermediary platform12.User14 may open an account with AliPay, and deposit a certain amount of fund into the account through direct deposit or recharging method. Ifuser14 purchases a product ofmerchant11, a deduction from the account is processed through AliPay. This method only requiresmerchant11 to complete account reconciliation and account remittance with AliPay on a regular basis.
• Intermediary transaction platform12 may have aserver center15 and adatabase16. Theserver center15 is used for processing order requests, while thedatabase16 is used for recording each transaction in real time. Merchant11 andbankcard subsystem13 may check business orders regularly by visiting thedatabase22.
• In the above transaction pattern,merchant11 and user14 (typically a buyer) usually reside in the same country or use the same credit system. For the purpose of illustration, ifuser14 resides in China and wants to purchase a product of an online offshore merchant, the existing mode of transaction usually involves the following:
• User14 first logs in a website of an onlineoffshore merchant11 and submits an order request. The order request may include transaction information such as the name of the product to be purchased, price, payment method, user information including mailing address.
• User14 then exchanges RMB into a currency (US dollars, for example) accepted by theonline merchant11 at a foreign exchange service, and transfers or mail the right amount of foreign currency to an account appointed bymerchant11. Upon receiving the mail money, theonline merchant11 ships the product. Ifuser14 already has a sufficient amount of the required foreign currency,user14 may send the money directly without using a foreign exchange service.
• Alternatively, instead of sending the fund directly into theonline merchant11's account,user14 may send the fund to an offshore intermediary platform such as AliPay to improve the transaction's security.
• The above transaction pattern has several deficiencies. First, the buyer is required to have sufficient amount of required currency to buy an offshore product. This may incur inconvenience to buyers, especially to users in countries where obtaining foreign currency and making an international fund transfer is difficult and often restricted. As a result, the existing mode of transaction does not allow an easy online purchase of offshore products. Ideally, a buyer should not have to pay a visit to a special foreign exchange service in order to buy something online from a foreign country.
• Moreover, the buyer is required to calculate an equivalent amount of local currency (e.g., RMB) to exchange for the foreign currency (e.g., US dollars). As foreign exchange rates reported by real time quote systems of different foreign exchange institutions may be different, the buyer may need to compare foreign exchange rates of various institutions in order to get a better rate in each purchase of offshore product. This may further cause inconvenience to the buyer. In many instances, a buyer may give up on purchasing a product.
• Other issues that exist include the inability to directly evaluate the credibility of the merchant, the inability to assess the quality of the product, difficulties in making the return and getting a refund, and the long purchasing and shipping process.
SUMMARY
• Disclosed are a method and a system for processing offshore online transaction using an intermediary platform to conduct foreign currency exchange on behalf of a buyer and an offshore seller. The method allows the buyer to purchase a product of an offshore merchant website using a local currency through the intermediary platform. The buyer places an order at the offshore merchant website, which sends an order request to the intermediary platform. The intermediary platform calculates the purchase amount in local currency, and exchanges the local currency amount provided by the user into an equivalent foreign currency amount through a financial platform, and sends a transaction message indicating successful payment to the offshore merchant website to allow shipping of the product. The intermediary platform periodically conducts accounting and profit sharing operations with the offshore merchant website.
• The intermediary platform may either receive the order request directly from the offshore merchant website or via an offshore intermediary platform having a business relationship with the intermediary platform.
• In one embodiment, intermediary platform has access to a financial account of the user having a deposit of funds in local currency. The financial account of the user may be located within the intermediary platform. The account of the offshore merchant website may also be located within the intermediary platform. The user and the merchant may open these accounts when registering with the intermediary platform.
• The foreign currency exchange between the intermediary platform and the financial platform may either be conducted separately for each order or conducted with a batch process for multiple orders on a scheduled periodical basis. Transferring the amount of payment in the required currency to an account of the offshore merchant website may either be conducted for each order or as a part of a regular account settlement between the intermediary platform and offshore merchant website.
• The intermediary platform may receive foreign exchange rate information from a foreign exchange service and calculate the equivalent local currency amount based on the received foreign exchange rate information. The foreign exchange service may either be a separate service or a part of the financial platform.
• Also disclosed is an intermediary platform for processing offshore online transactions. The intermediary platform includes a computer server center programmed to perform the acts in the process of offshore online transactions disclosed herein. The intermediary platform is connected to the user, the offshore merchant website, and the financial platform through the Internet. The intermediary platform also has a database storing the financial account of the user and the financial account of the offshore merchant website.
• Compared with existing technologies, the disclosed method and system allow a user to complete an offshore purchase order without having to visit a foreign exchange service. The disclosed intermediary platform also improves the security of offshore business transactions.
• This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.
DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
• FIG. 1 shows a schematic structural diagram of an existing generic online transaction system.
• FIG. 2 shows a schematic structural diagram of a first exemplary environment for processing online transactions in accordance with the present disclosure.
• FIG. 3 shows an architectural data flow diagram of a first exemplary method for processing online transactions in accordance with the present disclosure.
• FIG. 4 shows a schematic structural diagram of a second exemplary environment for processing online transactions in accordance with the present disclosure.
• FIG. 5 shows an architectural data flow diagram of a second exemplary method for processing online transactions in accordance with the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
• The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail using accompanying figures.
• In the presence disclosure, a “module” or a “unit” in general refers to a functionality designed to perform a particular task or function. A module or a unit can be a piece of hardware, software, a plan or scheme, or a combination thereof, for effectuating a purpose associated with the particular task or function. In addition, delineation of separate units does not necessarily suggest that physically separate devices are used. Instead, the delineation may be only functional, not structural, and the functions of several units may be performed by a single combined device or component. When used in a computer-based system, regular computer components such as a processor, a storage and memory may be programmed to function as one or more units or devices to perform the various respective functions.
• FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram illustrating a firstexemplary environment20 for processing online transaction. Theenvironment20 includes user24 (buyer),intermediary platform22,offshore merchant website21, andfinancial platform28. It is noted thatuser24offshore merchant website21 are only representative. There may be multiple users and websites involved in theenvironment20. In addition, multiple financial platforms likefinancial platform28 may be a part of theenvironment20.
• Intermediary platform22 includes at least aserver center25 and adatabase26 storing various data.Intermediary platform22 enablesuser24 to purchase an offshore product ofoffshore merchant website21 using a local currency.Intermediary platform22 may be owned by a financial institution, or by a third party which has signed agreement with a financial institution. An example of suchintermediary platform22 is AliPay.Intermediary platform22 connects withoffshore merchant website21 andfinancial platform28, and is adapted for receiving an order request fromoffshore merchant website21. Upon receiving the request,intermediary platform22 calculates an amount of local currency equivalent to the foreign currency amount involved in a present transaction based on exchange rate information obtained fromfinancial platform28.Intermediary platform22 then exchanges for the needed foreign currency using the calculated amount of local currency, and sends a transaction message indicating successful payment tooffshore merchant website21.
• Offshore merchant website21 can be any website providing services or products to be purchased touser24. The products may be such tangible things as toys and clothes, or can be something intangible such as online games. Upon receiving an order of a product submitted byuser24,offshore merchant website21 sends an order request tointermediary platform22. The order request may include at least buyer information, product information, purchase amount in foreign currency and the type of currency. Upon receiving a transaction message indicating payment has been successfully made,offshore merchant website21 schedules to ship the product touser24.
• Financial platform28 can be any system that provides information about exchange rates of foreign currencies.Financial platform28 may further conduct selling and buying of foreign currencies. One example offinancial platform28 is a foreign exchange trading system of a financial institution.Financial platform28 provides exchange rate information of foreign currencies tointermediary platform22, and conducts a requested foreign exchange upon receiving a request fromintermediary platform22.
• It is appreciated thatFIG. 2 shows the method at a conceptual level for illustration only. Various ways may be used to implement the method and the intended functions. For example, in one embodiment,financial platform28 is part ofintermediary platform22.Intermediary platform22 callsfinancial platform28 to provide the current exchange rate of the foreign currency whenever such information is needed. In another embodiment,financial platform28 is a separate system but is connected tointermediary platform22 to provide exchange rate information, and to sell and buy foreign currencies upon request byintermediary platform22.Financial platform28 may either be owned by the same owner ofintermediary platform22, or by a different party (e.g., a financial institution such as a bank). In one embodiment,financial platform28 belongs to a separate system connected tointermediary platform22 to provide exchange rate information tointermediary platform22. In yet another embodiment,intermediary platform22 andfinancial platform28 may together constitute an independent system providing centralized foreign exchange service to multiple websites includingoffshore merchant website21.
• Server center25 may include various components and units to achieve various functions. As shown inFIG. 2, service and25 includes anInternet interface251, a financial platforminteractive interface252, a user processing unit253, awebsite processing unit254, atransaction processing unit255, anidentity verifying unit256, a foreignexchange processing unit257, a foreignexchange purchasing unit258, and anaccount processing unit259.
• TheInternet interface251 is adapted for establishing interaction between anInternet user24 andoffshore merchant website21. The financial platform interactive interface152 is adapted for establishing data communication with eachfinancial platform28. The user processing unit253 is adapted for receiving registration ofuser24, modifying the user information, saving information of each transaction (order) ofuser24, and saving personal information and transaction information ofuser24 into thedatabase26. Thewebsite processing unit254 is adapted for receiving and saving merchant information such as contract information, transaction information and billing information of eachoffshore merchant website21. Thetransaction processing unit255 is adapted for processing each offshore order request. Theidentity verifying unit256 is adapted for verifying identity ofuser24 for each offshore transaction. The foreignexchange processing unit257 is adapted for obtaining a current exchange rate from a foreign exchange quote system offinancial platform28 periodically, and for saving the current exchange rates. The foreignexchange processing unit257 also calculates an equivalent amount of local currency required for exchanging the foreign currency amount involved with each offshore transaction according to the exchange rate information. The foreignexchange purchasing unit258 is connected with a foreign exchange offering system offinancial platform28 to exchange the local currency amount into the foreign currency amount. Theaccount processing unit259 is adapted for conducting billing and account settlement operations (e.g., account clearing, reconciliation etc.) with eachoffshore merchant website21.
• Internet interface251 and financial platforminteractive interface252 may be communication interfaces. User processing unit253,website processing unit254,transaction processing unit255,identity verifying unit256, foreignexchange processing unit257, foreignexchange purchasing unit258, andaccount processing unit259 may be logical units and be implemented by a processor.
• Intermediary platform22 may connect with an identity verification system to verify identity ofuser24. One example of identity verification is an identification card verification system of Ministry of Public Security of China, which verifies the user identity using an identification card number entered by the cardholder. The identification card number and name of the user (user24) entered are compared with information stored in (or accessible by) the identification card verification system. If the identification card number and the name of the user are consistent with the information stored in the identification card verification system, the identity of the user is verified. Otherwise, identity verification has failed. A digital certificate may further be used to improve the security of identity verification.
• Intermediary platform22 is connected to foreign exchange vending systems and foreign exchange quote systems offinancial platform28 in order to calculate an equivalent local currency amount for exchanging the required foreign currency amount, and to process a foreign exchange purchase.Financial platform28 may also connect with organizations or agencies which govern or administer foreign exchange activities and monitor the foreign exchange purchases of user likeuser24. One example of such organizations or agencies is State Administration of Foreign Exchange in China.Financial platform28 may also connect with offshore financial platforms to allowintermediary platform22 to transfer foreign currency to an offshore financial platform designated byoffshore merchant website21. It is noted thatIntermediary platform22 may connect with multiple financial platforms likefinancial platform28.
• FIG. 3 shows an architectural data flow diagram of a firstexemplary method30 for processing online transactions in accordance with the present disclosure. Themethod30 uses the online transaction processing system disclosed herein. Themethod30 allows a user to purchase a product of an offshore merchant website using a local currency. This is accomplished using an intermediary platform disclosed herein. Themethod30 is described as follows. In this description, the order in which a process is described is not intended to be construed as a limitation, and any number of the described process blocks may be combined in any order to implement the method, or an alternate method.
• At S310,user34 logs in a contractedoffshore merchant website31, and submits a purchase order indicating a product of interest.User34 is a registered user ofintermediary platform32, and is usually non-anonymous.Intermediary platform32 may verify the identity ofuser34 during login. For example,intermediary platform32 may verify an identification card number and the name of the holder entered byuser34. If the identification card number and the name entered are consistent with information maintained by an identification card authority, verification is successful. Otherwise, subsequent operations may be denied.Intermediary platform32 may also perform other types of identity verification touser34.
• Intermediary platform32 may requireuser34 to enter the identification card information whenuser34 registers withintermediary platform32.Intermediary platform32 may first verify the received identification card information with the identification card authority. If identity is successfully verified, registration ofuser34 is granted. Otherwise, registration may be denied. Subsequent user login may not require further identity verification foruser34. Alternatively, because of the possibility of identification card forging, owner's name of a paying bank account used may be required to be consistent with the name ofuser34's identification card. The registration for offshore transaction may be denied if the names are inconsistent. However, becauseuser34 may make a payment through means other than using a bank account, this type of identity verification has certain limitations. Alternatively, the identity of a user conducting offshore transaction may be verified at the time of login or during the purchasing process. Above examples are only used for illustration purpose, and should not be construed as a limitation to the present disclosure.
• Beforeuser34 can log inoffshore merchant website31 and browse products for purchase,offshore merchant website31 needs to first establish a business relationship (e.g., signing a contract) withintermediary platform32. The two parties decide upon the contract terms such as the percentage of profit sharing and account settlement method.Offshore merchant website31 may designate a bank (e.g., financial platform38) for processing foreign exchanges, and determine how often accounting procedure is performed withintermediary platform32.Intermediary platform32 may also have its own choices offinancial platform38 for processing foreign exchange others.
• At block S320,offshore merchant website31 sends an order request tointermediary platform32. The order request includes buyer (user34) information, product information, purchase amount in foreign currency, and the type of currency for payment. In order to do this,offshore merchant website31 creates the order request upon receiving from user34 a purchase order including product and quantity to be purchased.
• At S330,intermediary platform32 receives the order request, and calculates the purchase amount in local currency based on foreign exchange rate obtained fromfinancial platform38.Intermediary platform32 may then display the local currency amount for this transaction touser34 for review and confirmation.
• In the present exemplary embodiment,intermediary platform32 may obtain foreign exchange rates fromfinancial platform38 on a periodical basis. In practice,intermediary platform32 may communicate with multiple financial platforms likefinancial platform38 to obtain various foreign exchange rates. Examples of foreign exchange rates that may be obtained are exchange rate between RMB and YEN, exchange rate between RMB and US dollar, and exchange rate between RMB and EURO. Upon receiving the order request,intermediary platform32 obtains the type of currency for payment and the associated amount from the request.
• In one embodiment,intermediary platform32 finds a relevant exchange rate atfinancial platform38 designated byoffshore merchant website31. In another embodiment,intermediary platform32 may compare exchange rates reported by variousfinancial platforms38.
• The identity verification ofuser34 and other types of verification may be performed in block S330.
• At S340, after receiving a payment confirmation ofuser34,intermediary platform32 exchanges the local currency amount in the account ofuser34 into the equivalent foreign currency amount usingfinancial platform38.
• In this block (S340), a process of the following steps may take place.
• A1: Whenintermediary platform32 sends the transaction information such as the purchase amount in the foreign currency touser34,user34 may be further required to confirm whether he or she wants to make this purchase. If yes, the process continues to the next step A2. Otherwise, the process terminates, and a transaction result is returned tooffshore merchant website31.
• A2: Upon receiving a payment confirmation ofuser34,intermediary platform32 determines whetheruser34 has an account onintermediary platform32. Ifuser34 has an account onintermediary platform32,intermediary platform32 determines whether the account has enough funds for the present transaction. If yes, the process proceeds to the next step A3. Otherwise,intermediary platform32 instructsuser34 to open an account, recharge an existing account or provide alternative payment method to pay for the present amount.
• A3:Intermediary platform32 exchanges the proper amount of the local currency ofuser34 into the required amount of the foreign currency throughfinancial platform38. The local currency may be withdrawn from an account held byuser34 onintermediary platform32, or provided by another payment method selected byuser34. In one embodiment,intermediary platform32 makes a foreign exchange purchase each time when an order requiring the foreign exchange purchase is processed. In another embodiment, considering that it may be burdensome forintermediary platform32 to make a foreign exchange purchase for every order, an amount of the local currency inuser34's account may first be kept and set aside.Intermediary platform32 may then exchange a combined local currency amount which has been accumulated a preset period of time into respective foreign currencies in a batch process. The back process may use the same or differentfinancial platforms38 for each exchange amount corresponding to an accumulated order. For example, there may be fifty transactions (orders) which require foreign exchange with Bank of China and one hundred transactions which require foreign exchange would Construction Bank in a certain day.Intermediary platform32 may then complete foreign exchange purchases in these banks in batch processing before the banks are closed.
• One example ofintermediary platform32 is the intermediary payment system AliPay. AliPay initiates a request of foreign exchange purchase was a bank such as Bank of China. The bank then performs the actual foreign exchange purchases and processes the purchases in the name of each individual user who buys offshore products. This foreign exchange process may take into consideration of each user's foreign exchange limit imposed on the user by regulations. The bank may subsequently notify AliPay upon completion of the foreign exchange purchases.
• In one embodiment,intermediary platform32 may limit the maximum foreign exchange purchase value ofuser34. For instance, if the foreign exchange purchase amount ofuser34 in a single transaction is greater than a preset value, or if the cumulative foreign exchange purchase amount ofuser34 accumulated in the present year is greater than a preset value,intermediary platform32 may notifyuser34 that its foreign exchange purchase has exceeded the prescribed limit.Intermediary platform32 may then terminate the transaction, and return a message of transaction termination tooffshore merchant website31.
• At S350,intermediary platform32 transfers the amount of payment in the required foreign currency to an account ofoffshore merchant website31, and upon transfer, sends a transaction message indicating successful payment tooffshore merchant website31, which will then ship the product.
• Intermediary platform32 has access to a financial account of the offshore merchant website for the purpose of transferring the funds. In one embodiment, the financial account of the offshore business is located withinintermediary platform32. Such an account may be opened by the merchant owner of the offshore merchant website by registering withintermediary platform32.
• If a payment has been successfully made,offshore merchant website31 may ship the product.Offshore merchant website31 may directly ship the product to a shipping address submitted to the website byuser34. Alternatively,offshore merchant website31 may log into a user processing unit ofintermediary platform32 to obtain user information such asuser34's name anduser34's contact method, and ship the product upon confirmation byuser34.
• At S360,intermediary platform32 periodically conducts accounting and profit sharing operations withoffshore merchant website31. Accounting operations may include regular account checking, account settlement, account balancing and account reconciliation.
• If a request of refund processing is received fromuser34 oroffshore merchant website31,intermediary platform32 determines if the request satisfies a preset requirement. If satisfied,intermediary platform32 exchanges the foreign currency into the local currency throughfinancial platform38, deposits the refund into the account ofuser34, and sends a refund processing result touser34 andoffshore merchant website31.
• In one embodiment,intermediary platform32 saves information of each offshore transaction for future references.Intermediary platform32 may receive inquiries from user andoffshore merchant website31 and return a feedback to the inquiring party based on the save the information. Transaction details contained in a user inquiry may include the type of currency for payment, the price of offshore product and the name of the product.
• Intermediary platform32 may directly connect withoffshore merchant website31 directly. Alternatively,intermediary platform32 may connect withoffshore merchant website301 via an offshore intermediary platform.Intermediary platform32 may also connect with both offshore merchant websites and offshore intermediary platforms. In the following, an exemplary embodiment is described to illustrate the process of completing an offshore transaction through connecting with an offshore intermediary platform.
• FIG. 4 shows a schematic structural diagram of a secondexemplary environment40 for offshore transaction. Theenvironment40 includes one ormore users41,intermediary platform42, one or moreoffshore merchant websites41, an offshore intermediary platform420 connecting with some or all of theoffshore merchant websites41, and one or morefinancial platforms48. Eachuser44,offshore merchant website41, offshore intermediary platform420, andfinancial platform48 connects aserver center45 and adatabase46 storing various data.
• Theserver center45 may include anInternet interface461, a financial platforminteractive interface462, a user processing unit463, awebsite processing unit464, atransaction processing unit465, anidentity verifying unit466, a foreignexchange processing unit467, a foreignexchange purchasing unit468, and anaccount processing unit469. These units are adapted for performing functions similar to the corresponding units ofFIG. 2.
• The offshore intermediary platform420 is similar tointermediary platform42 and is used for completing operations such as interaction and account settlement withintermediary platform42. The offshore intermediary platform420 is used for providing operations such as interaction and account settlement with theoffshore merchant website41.
• FIG. 5 shows an architectural data flow diagram of a secondexemplary method50 for processing online transactions in accordance with the present disclosure. Themethod50 allows a user to purchase a product of an offshore merchant website using a local currency through an intermediary platform and an offshore intermediary platform. Themethod50 is described as follows.
• At S510,user54 logs inoffshore merchant website51, and submits a purchase order tooffshore merchant website51. Offshoreintermediary platform520 is connected withoffshore merchant website51 and has signed a contract withintermediary platform52.
• At S520,offshore merchant website51 sends an order request tointermediary platform52 through offshoreintermediary platform520. The order request includes user (buyer) information, product information, purchase amount in foreign currency, and the type of currency for payment.
• At S530,intermediary platform52 receives the order request, and calculates the purchase amount in local currency based on a foreign exchange rate obtained fromfinancial platform58.Intermediary platform52 may then display the local currency amount for this transaction touser54 for review and confirmation.
• At S540, after receiving a payment confirmation ofuser54,intermediary platform52 exchanges the local currency amount held in an account ofuser54 into required foreign currency throughfinancial platform58.
• At S550,intermediary platform52 transfers the amount of payment in the required foreign currency to an account ofoffshore merchant website51, and upon transfer, sends through the offshore intermediary platform520 a transaction message indicating successful payment tooffshore merchant website51, which will then ship the product.
• At S560,intermediary platform52 periodically conducts accounting and profit sharing operations with offshoreintermediary platform520. Alternatively,intermediary platform52 may directly complete accounting and profit sharing operations withoffshore merchant website51 periodically.
• The above second exemplary embodiment of the online transaction is similar to the first exemplary embodiment of the online transaction described with reference toFIG. 3. The primary difference is that in the second exemplary online transactionintermediary platform52 interacts withoffshore merchant website51 indirectly through offshoreintermediary platform520. Instead of signing a contract directly with eachoffshore merchant website51,intermediary platform52 signs a contract with offshoreintermediary platform520. Moreover,intermediary platform52 conducts accounting and profit sharing operations with offshoreintermediary platform520, which in turn may conduct accounting and profit sharing operations with each contracted offshore merchant website such asoffshore merchant website51. How the offshore intermediary platform connects and performs operations such as accounting and profit sharing with the offshore merchant website is not a consideration of this exemplary online transaction. Alternatively,intermediary platform52 may directly perform accounting operation with each individualoffshore merchant website51, regardless of how offshoreintermediary platform520 conducts its own accounting operation withoffshore merchant website51.
• It is appreciated thatintermediary platform52 may separately sign contracts withoffshore merchant websites51 and offshoreintermediary platform520 without affecting the offshore online transaction itself.
• The disclosed method and system allow a user (e.g., a buyer) to complete an offshore online transaction without having to visit a foreign exchange service or agency such as a bank to make a foreign exchange purchase and a foreign currency remittance. The user further does not need to be concerned of the conditions of offshore merchant website. The disclosed method and system allow the user to use local currency to make a purchase of an offshore product with convenience and security. From a merchant's perspective, the disclosed method may help improve the rate of successful transactions.
• It is appreciated that the potential benefits and advantages discussed herein are not to be construed as a limitation or restriction to the scope of the appended claims.
• Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as exemplary forms of implementing the claims.

Claims (17)

What is claimed is:

1. A method for processing offshore online transaction, the method comprising:

receiving at an intermediary platform an order request from an offshore merchant website, the order request containing information of a user desiring to buy a product sold at the offshore merchant website, information of the product, an amount of payment and a required currency for payment;

conducting a foreign currency exchange between the intermediary platform and a financial platform to exchange an equivalent local currency amount into the amount of payment in the required currency;

transferring the amount of payment in the required currency to an account of the offshore merchant website; and

sending a notification message indicating successful payment to the offshore merchant website to allow the offshore merchant website to ship the product to the user.

2. The method as recited inclaim 1, wherein the order request from the offshore merchant website is received via an offshore intermediary platform having a business relationship with the intermediary platform.

3. The method as recited inclaim 1, wherein the intermediary platform has access to a financial account of the user having a deposit of funds in local currency.

4. The method as recited inclaim 3, wherein the financial account of the user is located within the intermediary platform.

5. The method as recited inclaim 1, the account of the offshore merchant website is located within the intermediary platform.

6. The method as recited inclaim 1, wherein the foreign currency exchange between the intermediary platform and the financial platform is conducted with a batch process.

7. The method as recited inclaim 1, wherein transferring the amount of payment in the required currency to an account of the offshore merchant website is conducted as a part of a regular account settlement between the intermediary platform and offshore merchant website.

8. The method as recited inclaim 1, further comprising:

receiving at the intermediary platform foreign exchange rate information from a foreign exchange service; and

calculating the equivalent local currency amount based on the received foreign exchange rate information.

9. The method as recited inclaim 8, wherein the foreign exchange service is a part of the financial platform.

10. The method as recited inclaim 1, wherein the offshore merchant website performs accounting settlement with the intermediary platform on a regular basis for the purpose of account balancing and profit sharing.

11. The method as recited inclaim 1, further comprising:

verifying the user's identity at the intermediary platform.

12. The method as recited inclaim 1, further comprising:

sending information of the foreign currency exchange to the user to be reviewed by the user.

13. The method as recited inclaim 1, further comprising:

checking if conducting the foreign currency exchange between the intermediary platform and the financial platform would break a maximum limit of foreign exchange imposed on the user.

14. The method as recited inclaim 1, the method further comprising:

receiving a request for refund from the user or the offshore merchant website;

exchanging a refund amount in the foreign currency into the local currency through the financial platform; and

depositing the refund amount in the local currency into the user's account.

15. An intermediary platform for processing offshore online transactions, the intermediary platform comprising a computer server center programmed to perform the following:

receiving at an intermediary platform an order request from an offshore merchant website, the order request containing information of a user desiring to buy a product sold at the offshore merchant website, information of the product, an amount of payment and a required currency for payment;

conducting a foreign currency exchange between the intermediary platform and a financial platform to exchange an equivalent local currency amount into the amount of payment in the required currency;

transferring the amount of payment in the required currency to a financial account of the offshore merchant website; and

sending a notification message indicating successful payment to the offshore merchant website to allow the offshore merchant website to ship the product to the user.

16. The intermediary platform as recited inclaim 15, the intermediary transaction platform is connected to the user, the offshore merchant website, and the financial platform through the Internet.

17. The intermediary platform as recited inclaim 15, comprising a database storing a financial account of the user and the financial account of the offshore merchant website.

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