Payment agent apparatus, payment agent system, payment agent method, and program

Abstract

To properly perform payment by proxy.SOLUTION: A payment agent apparatus includes: an application acquisition unit which acquires an application for bank transfer payment of salary for an employee; an account transfer request unit which makes a request for account transfer to an account transfer business entity on the basis of the application acquired by the application acquisition unit; a transfer result acquisition unit which acquires, from the account transfer business entity, a result of the account transfer for which the request has been made by the account transfer request unit; and a transfer processing unit which executes bank transfer payment of salary for the employee based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit when the result of the account transfer for which the request has been made by the account transfer request unit indicates normal completion of the account transfer.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 17

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a payment agency device, a payment agency system, a payment agency method, and a program.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there has been a mechanism for a company to substitute the payment of salaries to employees. For example, as a technology for substituting the payment of salaries, there is known a technology in which an advance payment contractor temporarily advances from its own funds to execute an advance payment process (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] According to the above-described technology, there has been a problem that the advance payment contractor takes a long time to recover after paying the salary.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and an object thereof is to provide a payment agency device, a payment agency system, a payment agency method, and a program that can suitably substitute payments.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] (1) One aspect of the present invention is a payment agency device comprising: an application acquisition unit that acquires an application for transferring salary to an employee; a bank transfer request unit that requests a bank transfer to a bank transfer service provider based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit; a transfer result acquisition unit that acquires, from the bank transfer service provider, a result of the bank transfer requested by the bank transfer request unit; and a transfer processing unit that executes the salary transfer to the employee based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit when the result of the bank transfer requested by the bank transfer request unit indicates that the bank transfer has been successfully performed.

[0007] (2) Further, one aspect of the present invention is, in the payment agency device described in (1) above, the bank transfer request unit requests a bank transfer to the bank transfer service provider triggered by the acquisition of the application by the application acquisition unit.

[0008] (3) Further, one aspect of the present invention is, in the payment agency device described in (1) or (2) above, the application acquired by the application acquisition unit includes transfer information that at least includes information regarding the transfer amount. The bank transfer request unit requests a bank transfer to the bank transfer service provider based on the transfer information, and the transfer processing unit executes the salary transfer to the employee based on the transfer information.

[0009] (4) Further, one aspect of the present invention is a payment agency system comprising: a transfer application device that makes an application for transferring salary to an employee; the payment agency device according to any one of (1) to (3) above that requests a bank transfer to a bank transfer service provider based on the application made by the transfer application device and executes the salary transfer to the employee when the result of the bank transfer indicates that the bank transfer has been successfully performed; and a bank transfer device that processes the bank transfer requested by the payment agency device and notifies the payment agency device of the result of the bank transfer.

[0010] (5) Further, one aspect of the present invention is an agency payment method having an application acquisition step of acquiring an application for salary transfer to an employee, a bank transfer request step of requesting a bank transfer to a bank transfer service provider based on the application acquired in the application acquisition step, a transfer result acquisition step of acquiring the result of the bank transfer requested in the bank transfer request step from the bank transfer service provider, and a transfer process step of executing the salary transfer to the employee based on the application acquired in the application acquisition step when the result of the bank transfer requested in the bank transfer request step indicates that the bank transfer has been normally performed.

[0011] (6) Further, one aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer to execute an application acquisition step of acquiring an application for salary transfer to an employee, a bank transfer request step of requesting a bank transfer to a bank transfer service provider based on the application acquired in the application acquisition step, a transfer result acquisition step of acquiring the result of the bank transfer requested in the bank transfer request step from the bank transfer service provider, and a transfer process step of executing the salary transfer to the employee based on the application acquired in the application acquisition step when the result of the bank transfer requested in the bank transfer request step indicates that the bank transfer has been normally performed.

Advantages of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an agency payment device, an agency payment system, an agency payment method, and a program that can suitably perform agency payment.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0013]

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Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0014] [Embodiment] Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of a payment agency device, a payment agency system, a payment agency method, and a program according to an aspect of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the aspects of the present invention are not limited to these embodiments, and also include those with various modifications or improvements added. That is, the constituent elements described below include those that can be easily assumed by those skilled in the art and substantially identical ones, and the constituent elements described below can be combined as appropriate. Also, various omissions, substitutions, or changes of the constituent elements can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Also, in the following drawings, in order to make each configuration easy to understand, the scale and number, etc. in each structure may be made different from the scale and number, etc. in the actual structure.

[0015] First, matters that are the premise of this embodiment will be described. The payment agency device, payment agency system, payment agency method, and program according to this embodiment perform payment agency in response to a request. As a specific example, payment of salary, wage, or remuneration (hereinafter referred to as salary, etc.) from a company (user) to an employee (worker) can be exemplified. There may be a specific employment relationship between the company and the employee. However, this embodiment is not limited to this example, and broadly includes performing payment agency based on some request.

[0016] [First Embodiment] The first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 14. In the first embodiment, the payment agency performs payment agency by temporarily making an advance payment.

[0017] [Outline of Payment Agency System] First, with reference to FIG. 1, the outline of the payment agency system 1 according to this embodiment will be described.

[0018] FIG. 1 is a block diagram for explaining the outline of the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. The payment agency system 1 includes a customer company 2, a payment agency 3, a customer employee 4, and a bank transfer operator 5.

[0019] The customer company 2 is the party that pays salaries and the like. The customer company 2 is, for example, an employer having a specific employment relationship with the customer employee 4. The customer company 2 pays salaries and the like to the customer employee 4 as consideration for the labor performed by the customer employee 4. Note that the customer company 2 does not pay salaries and the like directly to the customer employee 4, but indirectly pays salaries and the like to the customer employee 4 via the payment agency 3.

[0020] The customer employee 4 is the party that receives salaries and the like. The customer employee 4 is, for example, an employee having a specific employment relationship with the customer company 2. The customer employee 4 performs some labor based on the instructions of the customer company 2 and receives salaries and the like from the customer company 2 as consideration therefor. Note that the customer employee 4 does not directly receive salaries and the like from the customer company 2, but indirectly receives salaries and the like from the customer company 2 via the payment agency 3.

[0021] The payment agency 3 acts on behalf of the customer company 2 to pay salaries and the like to the customer employee 4. First, the payment agency 3 receives a salary transfer application from the customer company 2. In response to receiving the salary transfer application from the customer company 2, the payment agency 3 transfers salaries and the like to the customer employee 4. In addition, the payment agency 3 makes a bank transfer request to the bank transfer operator 5 and collects funds from the customer company 2 via the bank transfer operator 5.

[0022] The bank transfer operator 5 collects funds from the customer company 2 in response to the request from the payment agency 3. The bank transfer operator 5 pays the funds collected from the customer company 2 to the payment agency 3.

[0023] [A Series of Business Processes in an Agency Payment System] Next, with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4, a series of business processes in the agency payment system 1 will be described.

[0024] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the flow of operations regarding applications and information registration in the agency payment system according to the first embodiment. First, with reference to this figure, the flow of a series of operations regarding applications and information registration will be described.

[0025] (Step S11) First, an inflow occurs when the customer company 2 applies for the agency payment service. The application for the agency payment service may be made, for example, using a website operated by the agency payment provider 3. When applying for the agency payment service, the customer company 2 inputs the necessary items required by the agency payment provider 3 and uploads the necessary documents.

[0026] (Step S12) Next, when an application for the agency payment service is made from the customer company 2, the existence of an account to be the subject of real-time account transfer is confirmed. The subject account may be designated by the account transfer operator 5. If the customer company 2 has the subject account (i.e., Step S12; YES), the process proceeds to Step S14. If the customer company 2 does not have the subject account (i.e., Step S12; NO), the process proceeds to Step S13.

[0027] (Step S13) If the customer company 2 does not have the subject account, the customer company 2 opens the subject account. After the subject account is opened by the customer company 2, the process proceeds to Step S14.

[0028] (Step S14) Next, the customer company 2 performs store registration. In the store registration, information used for the agency payment service, such as the business form, store name, store address, telephone number, number of staff, and advance payment amount, is input.

[0029] (Step S15) Here, there may be a case where customer company 2 is already registered for other services (hereinafter referred to as related services) provided by payment agency 3 or a company related to payment agency 3. In such a case, all or part of the store registration may be omitted by using the information registered by customer company 2 for the related services. If customer company 2 is using the related services (i.e., Step S15; YES), the process proceeds to Step S16. If customer company 2 is not using the related services (i.e., Step S15; NO), the process proceeds to Step S16 and Step S17. Step S16 and Step S17 may be processes that proceed in parallel.

[0030] (Step S16) In this step, even if customer company 2 is already using the related services, if the information that needs to be provided by customer company 2 (e.g., the number of staff, the amount of payment to be made, etc.) is insufficient in the existing information, input regarding the insufficient information is performed. When the input is performed, the process proceeds to Step S21 and Step S22, which will be described later with reference to FIG. 4. Step S21 and Step S22 may be processes that proceed in parallel.

[0031] (Step S17) In this step, when customer company 2 is not using the related services, input of the information that needs to be provided by customer company 2 (e.g., business form, store name, store address, basic information about the store such as the phone number, etc.) is performed. When the input is performed, the process proceeds to Step S23, which will be described later with reference to FIG. 3.

[0032] FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of operations regarding examination and preparation for use in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. Next, a series of operations regarding examination and preparation for use will be described with reference to the figure.

[0033] (Step S21) When the customer company 2 inputs store information, the payment agency 3 sends a bank transfer request form to the customer company 2. The processing after the bank transfer request form is sent will be described later as Step S31.

[0034] (Step S22) Also, when the customer company 2 inputs store information, the payment agency 3 conducts a review in parallel with Step S21. This review is based on the premise that the customer company 2 is already using related services. Specifically, the number of staff, the amount of payment to be made, etc. are referred to, and a review is conducted on whether the customer company 2 can use the payment agency service. After the review, the process proceeds to Step S24.

[0035] (Step S23) Also, when the customer company 2 inputs detailed store information in the case where the customer company 2 is not using related services, the payment agency 3 conducts a more detailed review (also referred to as an additional review). In this review, for example, a review is conducted on basic information about the store such as the business form, store name, store address, and phone number.

[0036] (Step S24) Next, when the review of the customer company 2 is completed, activation is performed. Through activation, the customer company 2 can log in to the payment agency service. As a result of activation, information such as a login ID and a login password may be provided from the payment agency 3 to the customer company 2. After activation, the process proceeds to Step S32.

[0037] (Step S31) When the customer company 2 receives the bank transfer request form from the payment agency 3, it fills in the information in accordance with the format of the request form and returns the bank transfer request form to the payment agency 3. The processing after the bank transfer request form is returned will be described later as Step S41.

[0038] (Step S32) After the customer company 2 is activated by the payment agency 3 and information such as the login ID and login password is provided, the payment agency service becomes in a state where it can be logged in. In step S32, the customer company 2 makes the first login to the payment agency service.

[0039] (Step S33) After the first login is made, the customer company 2 registers staff in the payment agency service. Staff registration is the registration of the customer employee 4 who is the object of payment such as salary by the payment agency service. In this step, for example, the customer company 2 inputs the account information etc. of the customer employee 4. After the staff registration is completed, the process proceeds to step S51 which will be described later with reference to FIG. 4.

[0040] (Step S41) When the payment agency 3 receives the return of the account transfer request form from the customer company 2, it requests the account transfer operator 5 to register the account transfer. The request for the account transfer registration may be made based on the format provided by the account transfer operator 5.

[0041] (Step S42) The account transfer operator 5 receives the request for the account transfer registration from the payment agency 3. The account transfer operator 5 performs the account transfer registration based on the request. When the account transfer registration is completed, the account transfer operator 5 notifies the payment agency 3 that the account transfer registration has been completed.

[0042] (Step S43) When the payment agency 3 receives the notification that the account transfer registration has been completed, it sets the usage limit amount. The usage limit amount is the upper limit of the amount that can be paid in response to the request of the customer company 2. The usage limit amount may be determined based on the information input in steps S16 and S17 described with reference to FIG. 2, for example. After the usage limit amount is set, the process proceeds to step S51 which will be described later with reference to FIG. 4.

[0043] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of operations regarding the use in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. Next, a series of operation flows regarding the use will be described with reference to the figure.

[0044] (Step S51) In the service usage stage, first, customer company 2 submits a monthly salary transfer application to payment agency 3. The monthly salary transfer application includes, for example, information such as the transfer amount and the transfer destination. The monthly salary transfer application is made, for example, while logged in to the payment agency service using information such as the login ID and login password issued in the activation of step S24.

[0045] (Step S52) When the monthly salary transfer application is made, payment agency 3 performs a transfer process for customer employee 4 for whom staff registration was performed in step 33. The transfer process is performed based on the transfer amount specified in the monthly salary transfer application and the transfer destination, etc.

[0046] (Step S53) After (or in parallel with) the transfer process for customer employee 4, payment agency 3 makes a bank transfer request to bank transfer operator 5. The amount for which the bank transfer request is made may be the same amount as the amount transferred to customer employee 4 or an amount obtained by adding a fee to that amount.

[0047] (Step S54) When bank transfer operator 5 receives the bank transfer request from payment agency 3, it immediately performs a bank transfer (hereinafter referred to as real-time bank transfer). In the present embodiment, since bank transfer operator 5 and customer company 2 have previously entered into a bank transfer contract in the above-described usage preparation stage, it is possible to perform real-time bank transfer.

[0048] (Step S55) Customer Company 2 makes a payment in response to a request for real-time account transfer from Account Transfer Operator 5. Since Customer Company 2 and Account Transfer Operator 5 have previously entered into an account transfer contract in the above-described preparation stage for use, Customer Company 2 does not need to actively make a payment, and the transfer may be automatically made from the designated account.

[0049] (Step S56) When the real-time account transfer is performed, Account Transfer Operator 5 notifies Payment Agent 3 of the result of the real-time account transfer. The result of the real-time account transfer includes information indicating whether the real-time account transfer was successful. The case where the real-time account transfer fails includes cases where there is not enough balance in the designated account of Customer Company 2 and the debit cannot be made.

[0050] (Step S57) Payment Agent 3 receives the result of the real-time account transfer. If the result of the real-time account transfer is a failure, Payment Agent 3 may issue a reminder to Customer Company 2.

[0051] (Step S58) If the real-time account transfer is successful, Account Transfer Operator 5 transfers funds to Payment Agent 3.

[0052] (Step S59) Payment Agent 3 collects funds from Account Transfer Operator 5.

[0053] [Display Screen] Next, an example of the display screen used in the payment agency system 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 12.

[0054] FIG. 5 is a first diagram showing an example of a display screen used in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. First, an example of the display screen 11 displayed at the time of inflow will be described with reference to this figure. The display screen 11 is an example of the display screen displayed in step S11 described above. The display screen 11 includes, for example, reference numerals 111, 112, and 113 as components of the screen. The application procedure for the payment agency service is performed in the following two steps.

[0055] Reference numeral 111 is a display screen for explaining the first step related to the application procedure for the payment agency service. In the first step, input of application information is performed. In the input step of the application information, input of contractor information, store information, and account information is performed. It is preferable for the customer company 2 to use an account in the name of an individual business owner as the account information. Note that the registerable account (that is, a financial institution capable of real-time account transfer) may be designated by the account transfer operator 5.

[0056] Reference numeral 112 is a display screen for explaining the second step related to the application procedure for the payment agency service. In the second step, uploading of necessary documents is performed. In the uploading step of the necessary documents, uploading of documents required for review is performed. Note that the necessary documents may differ depending on the industry type, whether or not related services are registered, and the like.

[0057] Reference numeral 113 is an application start button. The customer company 2 starts the application procedure for the payment agency service by operating this button.

[0058] FIG. 6 is a second diagram showing an example of a display screen used in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. Next, an example of the display screen 12 displayed when confirming the presence or absence of an account transfer target account will be described with reference to the same figure. The display screen 12 is an example of the display screen displayed in step S12 described above. The display screen 12 includes, for example, reference numerals 121, 122, and 123 as components of the screen.

[0059] Reference numeral 121 indicates that a bank account of a financial institution capable of account transfer is required. The customer company 2 can confirm a financial institution capable of account transfer by referring to the link destination of reference numeral 1211.

[0060] Reference numeral 122 is a selection box for available financial institutions. The customer company 2 operates the selection box to select a financial institution capable of account transfer from among the financial institutions where it has a bank account.

[0061] Reference numeral 123 describes the measures when the customer company 2 does not have a bank account of an available financial institution. When the customer company 2 does not have a bank account of an available financial institution, it is necessary to open an account. The customer company 2 moves to the link destination of reference numeral 1231 to open a bank account of an available financial institution.

[0062] FIG. 7 is a third diagram showing an example of a display screen used in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. Next, an example of the display screen 13 first displayed at the time of store registration will be described with reference to the same figure. The display screen 13 is an example of the display screen displayed in step S14 described above. The display screen 13 includes, for example, reference numerals 131, 132, 133, 134, and 135 as components of the screen.

[0063] Symbols 131 and 132 are text boxes for customer company 2 to enter the identification information (hereinafter referred to as ID) and password for using the related services when customer company 2 already uses the related services. Customer company 2 can also enter an email address instead of the ID. By checking the checkbox of symbol 133, customer company 2 can omit the entry of the ID and password from the next time.

[0064] Symbol 134 is a login button. After customer company 2 enters the ID (or email address) and password, by operating the login button of symbol 134, it can inherit the registration information of the related services and log in to the payment agency service according to this embodiment.

[0065] Symbol 135 is a button for new registration when customer company 2 has not yet used the related services and does not have the ID and password for using the related services. Customer company 2 operates the button and enters the input items required at the link destination to obtain the ID and password, and then logs in.

[0066] Figure 8 is the fourth figure showing an example of the display screen used in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. Next, an example of the display screen 14 displayed when inputting store information will be described with reference to the figure. The display screen 14 is an example of the display screen displayed in step S16 described above. The display screen 14 includes, for example, symbols 141, 142, 143, and 144 as components of the screen.

[0067] The information registered when customer company 2 used the related service is carried over to symbol 141, and its content is displayed. In the illustrated example, the business form "corporation", store name "Air Pay Shop", store name in kana "エアペイショップ", store name "AIRPAY SHOP", store postal code "1006644", store address "Chiyoda-ku, Marunouchi", address after the building number "1-9-2 Kamome Mansion", store address in kana "チヨダクマルノウチ", and store telephone number "00-0000-0000" are carried over from the related service and their content is displayed.

[0068] Symbol 142 is an input section for inputting items necessary when using the payment agency service even if customer company 2 has already used the related service. In the illustrated example, the number of staff and the amount of payment to be reserved are provided as input items. The number of staff is the number of customer employees 4 employed by customer company 2, and the amount of payment to be reserved is the amount planned to be requested from payment agency operator 3 for payment on behalf.

[0069] Symbol 143 is an input section for the invitation code. Whether or not there is an input for this input section is optional. Customer company 2 may be able to enjoy advantageous services by inputting the code received during a campaign or introduction into this input section.

[0070] Symbol 144 is a button to proceed to the next step. When customer company 2 has completed the input for all the above-mentioned items, it operates the button to proceed to the next step of symbol 144 to advance the process.

[0071] Note that the screen configuration of display screen 14 displayed when inputting store information may differ depending on whether customer company 2 has used the related service or not. If customer company 2 has not used the related service, more items will be requested for input from customer company 2 than the items shown in the figure.

[0072] Fig. 9 is a fifth diagram showing an example of a display screen used in the payment agent system according to the first embodiment. Display screen 15 shown in the figure is a display screen that is displayed when button 144 is operated on display screen 14 described with reference to Fig. 8. As is clear from the figure, it is clearly indicated that the first step, which is the input step of application information, has been completed. It is also clearly indicated that the next step will be the second step, which is the uploading step of required documents.

[0073] The documents that need to be uploaded are clearly displayed on the screen. In the example shown in the figure, the client company 2 needs to upload "Required Document 1," "Required Document 2," and "Required Document 3." The client company 2 operates the reference numeral 151 to proceed to the required document upload screen and upload the required documents.

[0074] 10 is a sixth diagram showing an example of a display screen used in the payment agent system according to the first embodiment. Next, an example of the display screen 16 displayed after the first login will be described with reference to the same diagram. The display screen 16 is an example of a display screen displayed after the first login is performed in step S32 described above. The display screen 16 includes, for example, reference numerals 161, 162, 163, and 164 as screen components.

[0075] Reference numeral 161 denotes a selection box for selecting who should bear the fees. The fees include a transfer fee and an administrative fee. Either the staff side (i.e., the client employee 4) or the employer side (i.e., the client company 2) can be selected as the party to bear the fees. This selection screen can also be displayed again from a specified setting screen after logging in for the first time.

[0076] Reference numeral 162 denotes a selection box for selecting the attendance deadline and the payday. In the example shown, the attendance deadline is selected as "the last day of the month." In addition, the payday is selected as "next month" and "20th."

[0077] Symbol 163 is an input section for setting the destination of the email to the administrator. In the illustrated example, it is possible to input four email addresses. By inputting the administrator's email address into the input section, customer company 2 can receive contact emails from payment agency 3.

[0078] Symbol 164 is the start button. After customer company 2 has completed the input of symbols 161 to 163 described above, it starts using the payment agency service by operating the start button shown as symbol 164.

[0079] Figure 11 is the seventh figure showing an example of the display screen used in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. With reference to this figure, an example of the display screen 17 displayed at the time of staff registration will be described. The display screen 17 is an example of the display screen displayed in step S33 described above. The display screen 17 includes, for example, symbols 171 and 172 as components of the screen.

[0080] Symbol 171 is a screen for inputting the detailed information of the staff to be added. Customer company 2 inputs the detailed information of the staff to be added for each item. In the illustrated example, specifically, the name "Ichiro Aozora", financial institution "XX Bank", branch name "XX Branch", account type "ordinary deposit", account number "XXX-XXXXXX", and account name (katakana) "AOZORA ICHIROU" are input.

[0081] Symbol 172 is the input completion button. When customer company 2 has completed the input for the items for which input of information is required in symbol 171, it completes the input of the detailed information of the staff by operating the input completion button, which is symbol 172.

[0082] Although not shown in the drawings, there may be a list display screen of the staff added on the staff addition screen described with reference to FIG. 11. The customer company 2 may be configured to be able to select a specific staff on the list display screen and update the information.

[0083] FIG. 12 is a eighth diagram showing an example of a display screen used in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. With reference to this figure, an example of the display screen 18 displayed at the time of monthly salary transfer application will be described. The display screen 18 is an example of the display screen displayed in step S51 described above. The display screen 18 includes, for example, reference numerals 181, 182, and 183 as screen components.

[0084] Reference numeral 181 is a monthly salary transfer target period display section. In the monthly salary transfer target period display section, the period targeted for monthly salary transfer is displayed. The customer company 2 applies for monthly salary transfer for the period displayed in the display section. In the illustrated example, specifically, from September 21, 2021 (Tuesday) to October 20, 2021 (Saturday) is displayed as the monthly salary transfer target period.

[0085] Reference numeral 182 is a salary calculation amount input section. The customer company 2 inputs the salary calculation amount for each staff (customer employee 4) during the monthly salary transfer target period input to reference numeral 181. Note that the salary calculation amount may be input by reading a file in a predetermined format such as a csv file.

[0086] Reference numeral 183 is a transfer application button. When the input for reference numeral 182 described above is completed, the customer company 2 operates the transfer application button 183 to apply for transfer to the payment agency 3.

[0087] [Functional Configuration] FIG. 13 is a functional configuration diagram showing an example of the functional configurations of a transfer application device, a payment agency device, and an account transfer device according to the first embodiment. With reference to this figure, an example of the functional configuration of each device included in the payment agency system 1 will be described. The payment agency system 1 is configured to include at least a transfer application device 20, a payment agency device 30, and an account transfer device 50. The transfer application device 20 is operated by the customer company 2. The payment agency device 30 is operated by the payment agency 3. The account transfer device 50 is operated by the account transfer business operator 5.

[0088] Each functional unit included in the transfer application device 20, the payment agency device 30, and the account transfer device 50 may be internally provided with storage means such as a semiconductor memory or a magnetic hard disk device as necessary. Also, each function may be realized by a computer having a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and software. Further, all or part of each functional unit may be realized using hardware such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a PLD (Programmable Logic Device), or an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array). Also, all or part of each functional unit may be realized by a combination of software and hardware.

[0089] The transfer application device 20 includes a salary information DB (database) 21, an application request acquisition unit 22, and an application unit 23. The transfer application device 20 makes an application for the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4 by including these units. The transfer application device 20 may be realized, for example, by downloading a transfer application program to a general-purpose device such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a personal computer.

[0090] The salary information DB 21 stores information regarding the salary of customer employees 4. The information extracted from the salary information DB 21 may be in a predetermined format such as, for example, the CSV (Comma Separated Values) format. The information extracted from the salary information DB 21 may be reflected, for example, on the display screen 18 shown in FIG. 12. Also, the configuration may be such that the information input to the display screen 18 shown in FIG. 12 is stored in the salary information DB 21.

[0091] The application request acquisition unit 22 acquires a request regarding a transfer application from the customer company 2. For example, the application request acquisition unit 22 may acquire a request regarding a transfer application from the customer company 2 based on the operation of the transfer application button 183 shown in FIG. 18.

[0092] When the application acquisition unit 22 acquires a request regarding a transfer application from the customer company 2, the application unit 23 makes a salary transfer application to the payment agency device 30 based on the information stored in the salary information DB 21.

[0093] The payment agency device 30 includes an application acquisition unit 31, a transfer processing unit 32, an account transfer request unit 33, and a transfer result acquisition unit 34. The payment agency device 30 executes the transfer of the salary to the customer employee 4 based on the application made by the transfer application device 20. Also, the payment agency device 30 requests the account transfer business operator 5 for an account transfer regarding the salary transfer amount to the customer employee 4. The payment agency device 30 may be realized, for example, by downloading a payment agency program to a general-purpose device such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a personal computer.

[0094] The application acquisition unit 31 acquires an application regarding the transfer of the salary to the employee from the transfer application device 20. Note that the application includes at least transfer information. The transfer information includes information regarding the transfer amount transferred to the customer employee 4. In addition, the transfer information may include information regarding the transfer destination, the transfer date, etc.

[0095] Based on the application obtained by the application acquisition unit 31 (i.e., based on the transfer information), the transfer processing unit 32 executes the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4. Here, the transfer processing unit 32 performs the transfer process in real time in response to a request from the customer company 2. That is, it is preferable that the transfer processing unit 32 executes the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4 triggered by the acquisition of the application by the application acquisition unit 31.

[0096] Based on the transfer information, the account transfer request unit 33 requests the account transfer operator 5 for an account transfer regarding the transfer amount executed by the transfer processing unit 32. Here, the account transfer request unit 33 makes a transfer request in real time in response to the transfer from the payment agency 3 to the customer employee 4. That is, it is preferable that the account transfer request unit 33 requests the account transfer operator 5 for an account transfer triggered by the execution of the salary transfer to the customer employee 4.

[0097] The transfer result acquisition unit 34 acquires the result of the account transfer performed by the account transfer device 50. The transfer result acquisition unit 34 may perform processes such as notifying the transfer application device 20 according to the result of the account transfer.

[0098] The account transfer device 50 includes a request acquisition unit 51, an account transfer processing unit 52, and a transfer result notification unit 53. By including these units, the account transfer device 50 processes the account transfer requested from the payment agency device 30. The account transfer device 50 may be realized, for example, by downloading an account transfer program to a general-purpose device such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a personal computer.

[0099] The request acquisition unit 51 acquires an account transfer request from the payment agency device 30. The account transfer request includes at least information for identifying the customer company 2 and information regarding the transfer amount.

[0100] Upon receiving the account transfer request obtained by the request acquisition unit 51, the account transfer processing unit 52 performs account transfer processing. The account transfer processing unit 52 conducts an account transfer for the customer company 2 specified by the account transfer request with respect to the transfer amount specified by the account transfer request.

[0101] The transfer result notification unit 53 notifies the payment agency device 30 of the result of the account transfer performed by the account transfer processing unit 52.

[0102] FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of each device included in the payment agency system according to the first embodiment. At least some functions of each device included in the payment agency system can be realized using a computer. As shown in the figure, the computer includes a central processing unit 901, a RAM 902, an input / output port 903, input / output devices 904 and 905, etc., and a bus 906. The computer itself can be realized using existing technologies. The central processing unit 901 executes instructions included in the programs read from the RAM 902 and the like. The central processing unit 901 writes data to the RAM 902, reads data from the RAM 902, and performs arithmetic operations and logical operations according to each instruction. The RAM 902 stores data and programs. Each element included in the RAM 902 has an address and can be accessed using the address. Note that RAM is an abbreviation for "random access memory". The input / output port 903 is a port for the central processing unit 901 to exchange data with external input / output devices and the like. The input / output devices 904 and 905 are input / output devices. The input / output devices 904 and 905 exchange data with the central processing unit 901 via the input / output port 903. The bus 906 is a common communication path used inside the computer. For example, the central processing unit 901 reads and writes data in the RAM 902 via the bus 906. Also, for example, the central processing unit 901 accesses the input / output port via the bus 906. Also, all or part of each functional unit included in each device included in the payment agency system may be realized using hardware such as an ASIC, a PLD, or an FPGA. Also, all or part of each functional unit may be realized by a combination of software and hardware.

[0103] [Summary of the First Embodiment] According to the above-described embodiment, the payment agency device 30 includes an application acquisition unit 31 to acquire an application for the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4, and includes a transfer processing unit 32 to execute the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4 based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit 31. By including an account transfer request unit 33, a request for account transfer is made to the account transfer operator 5 for the transferred amount executed by the transfer processing unit 32. Further, the transfer processing unit 32 executes the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4 triggered by the acquisition of the application by the application acquisition unit 31. That is, according to this embodiment, when there is a salary transfer application from the customer company 2, the payment agency device 30 immediately transfers the salary to the customer employee 4. Therefore, according to this embodiment, payment agency can be preferably performed in real time.

[0104] Also, according to the above-described embodiment, the account transfer request unit 33 included in the payment agency device 30 makes a request for account transfer to the account transfer operator 5 triggered by the execution of the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4. That is, according to this embodiment, when the payment agency device 30 transfers the salary to the customer employee 4, it immediately makes a request for account transfer to the account transfer operator 5. Further, when there is a request for account transfer, the account transfer operator 5 performs account transfer from the pre-registered account of the customer company 2. Therefore, according to this embodiment, payment agency can be preferably performed in real time, and collection can be preferably performed.

[0105] Also, according to the above-described embodiment, the application acquired by the application acquisition unit 31 included in the payment agency device 30 includes transfer information. The transfer information includes at least information regarding the transferred amount. The transfer information may be in, for example, CSV format. The transfer processing unit 32 executes the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4 based on the transfer information, and the account transfer request unit 33 makes a request for account transfer to the account transfer operator 5 based on the transfer information. That is, according to this embodiment, since the processing is performed using the transfer information (for example, a file in CSV format), there is no need for manual input (account transfer work for each bank), and calculation errors can be suppressed.

[0106] [Second Embodiment] Next, with reference to FIGS. 15 to 17, the second embodiment will be described. In the above-described first embodiment, when a salary transfer application was made, the payment agency 3 first transferred the money to the customer employee 4, so that the payment amount of the salary was advanced once. Therefore, if the advanced amount could not be recovered from the customer company 2, there was a risk of bad debt occurring. Therefore, in the second embodiment, when a salary transfer application is made, first, the funds are recovered through the account transfer operator 5, and when the recovery is successful, the transfer to the customer employee 4 is executed. By adopting such a configuration, the bad debt risk of the payment agency 3 can be reduced to zero. In the description of the second embodiment, items already described in the first embodiment may be omitted by attaching the same reference numerals.

[0107] FIG. 15 is a block diagram for explaining the outline of the payment agency system according to the second embodiment. First, with reference to this figure, the outline of the payment agency system 1A according to the second embodiment will be described. The payment agency system 1A includes a customer company 2, a payment agency 3A, a customer employee 4, and an account transfer operator 5.

[0108] The payment agency 3A first receives a salary transfer application from the customer company 2. In response to receiving the salary transfer application from the customer company 2, the payment agency 3A makes an account transfer request to the account transfer operator 5 and recovers funds from the customer company 2 through the account transfer operator 5. When the recovery of funds by the account transfer operator 5 is successful, the payment agency 3A executes the transfer to the customer employee 4. That is, according to this embodiment, the payment agency 3A does not advance the transfer amount to the customer employee 4. First, the funds are recovered from the customer company 2 through the account transfer operator 5, and when the recovery is successful, the transfer process is executed for the customer employee 4.

[0109] FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing the flow of operations regarding the use in the payment agency system according to the second embodiment. With reference to this figure, a series of operation flows in the payment agency system 1A will be described. In the payment agency system 1A according to the second embodiment, the processes related to application, information registration, review, and preparation for use are the same as those in the payment agency system 1 according to the first embodiment. That is, in the usage stage, the processes of the payment agency system 1 and the payment agency system 1A are different from each other. Therefore, in the description of the process of the payment agency system 1A, the description of the processes related to application, information registration, review, and preparation for use will be omitted, and only the usage stage will be described.

[0110] (Step S61) First, the customer company 2 submits a monthly salary transfer application to the payment agency 3A.

[0111] (Step S62) When the monthly salary transfer application is made, the payment agency 3A makes a bank transfer request to the bank transfer operator 5. The amount for which the bank transfer request is made may be the amount specified in the monthly salary transfer application, which is the same as the amount scheduled to be transferred to the customer employee 4, or an amount obtained by adding a fee to that amount.

[0112] (Step S63) When the bank transfer operator 5 receives the bank transfer request from the payment agency 3, it immediately performs a bank transfer (performs a real-time bank transfer). In this embodiment, since the bank transfer operator 5 and the customer company 2 have previously entered into a bank transfer contract in the above-described preparation for use stage, it is possible to perform a real-time bank transfer.

[0113] (Step S64) The customer company 2 makes a payment in response to the real-time bank transfer request from the bank transfer operator 5. Since the customer company 2 and the bank transfer operator 5 have previously entered into a bank transfer contract in the above-described preparation for use stage, the customer company 2 does not need to actively make a payment, and the transfer may be automatically made from the designated account.

[0114] (Step S65) When real-time account transfer is performed, the account transfer operator 5 notifies the payment agency 3A of the result of the real-time account transfer. The result of the real-time account transfer includes information indicating whether the real-time account transfer was successful. The case where the real-time account transfer fails includes cases where there is not enough balance in the designated account of the customer company 2 and the debit cannot be made, etc.

[0115] (Step S66) The payment agency 3A receives the result of the real-time account transfer. If the result of the real-time account transfer is a failure, the payment agency 3 may not proceed to the next step S67 and may notify the customer company 2 that the salary transfer cannot be made.

[0116] (Step S67) When the result of the real-time account transfer is successful, the payment agency 3A performs a transfer process for the customer employee 4. The transfer process is performed based on the transfer amount and the transfer destination specified in the monthly salary transfer application.

[0117] (Step S68) When the real-time account transfer is successful, the account transfer operator 5 transfers funds to the payment agency 3A.

[0118] (Step S69) The payment agency 3A recovers funds from the account transfer operator 5.

[0119] FIG. 17 is a functional configuration diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of a transfer application device, a payment agency device, and an account transfer device according to the second embodiment. An example of the functional configuration of each device included in the payment agency system 1A will be described with reference to this figure. The payment agency system 1 includes at least a transfer application device 20, a payment agency device 30A, and an account transfer device 50. That is, the payment agency system 1A is different from the payment agency system 1 in that it includes a payment agency device 30A instead of the payment agency device 30. In the description of the payment agency system 1A, the same components as those of the payment agency system 1 may be denoted by the same reference numerals and the description may be omitted.

[0120] The payment agency device 30A includes an application acquisition unit 31, a transfer processing unit 32A, an account transfer request unit 33A, and a transfer result acquisition unit 34A. Based on the application made by the transfer application device 20, the payment agency device 30A requests an account transfer from the account transfer service provider 5. Also, based on the result of the account transfer, the payment agency device 30A executes the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4. The payment agency device 30A may be realized, for example, by downloading a payment agency program to a general-purpose device such as a smartphone, a tablet terminal, or a personal computer.

[0121] Based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit 31, the account transfer request unit 33A requests an account transfer from the account transfer service provider 5. Here, the account transfer request unit 33A makes a transfer request in real time in response to a request from the customer company 2. That is, it is preferable that the account transfer request unit 33A makes a request for an account transfer to the account transfer service provider 5 triggered by the acquisition of the application by the application acquisition unit 31.

[0122] The transfer result acquisition unit 34A acquires the result of the account transfer performed by the account transfer device 50. The transfer result acquisition unit 34A may perform processes such as notifying the transfer application device 20 according to the result of the account transfer.

[0123] Based on the result of the account transfer acquired by the transfer result acquisition unit 34A, the transfer processing unit 32A executes the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4. Specifically, when the result of the account transfer requested by the account transfer request unit 33A indicates that the account transfer was successfully performed, the transfer processing unit 32A executes the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4 based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit 31. Here, the transfer processing unit 32 performs the transfer process in real time according to the result of the account transfer. That is, it is preferable that the transfer processing unit 32A executes the transfer of salary to the customer employee 4 triggered by the acquisition of a result indicating that the account transfer was successfully performed by the transfer result acquisition unit 34A.

[0124] [Summary of the Second Embodiment] According to the above-described embodiment, the payment agency device 30A includes an application acquisition unit 31 to acquire an application for salary transfer to an employee, and includes an account transfer request unit 33A to request an account transfer to the account transfer operator 5 based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit 31. By including a transfer result acquisition unit 34A, the result of the account transfer requested by the account transfer request unit 33A is acquired from the account transfer operator 5. By including a transfer processing unit 32A, when the result of the account transfer requested by the account transfer request unit 33A indicates that the account transfer has been normally performed, the salary transfer to the customer employee 4 is executed based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit 31. That is, according to the present embodiment, when there is an application for salary transfer, the payment agency device 30A first performs an account transfer, and when the funds can be normally recovered, the transfer is made to the customer employee 4. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the payment can be preferably outsourced, and the risk of bad debt can be reduced to zero.

[0125] Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the account transfer request unit 33A included in the payment agency device 30A requests an account transfer to the account transfer operator 5 triggered by the acquisition of the application by the application acquisition unit 31. That is, according to the present embodiment, when there is an application for salary transfer, the payment agency device 30A immediately requests an account transfer to the account transfer operator 5. In addition, when there is an account transfer request, the account transfer operator 5 performs an account transfer from the account of the customer company 2 registered in advance. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the payment can be preferably outsourced in real time and recovered preferably.

[0126] Also, according to the above-described embodiment, the application acquired by the application acquisition unit 31 included in the payment agency device 30A includes transfer information. The transfer information at least includes information regarding the transfer amount. The transfer information may be in, for example, CSV format. The account transfer request unit 33A requests the account transfer operator 5 for an account transfer based on the transfer information, and the transfer processing unit 32A executes the transfer of the salary to the customer employee 4 based on the transfer information. That is, according to the present embodiment, since the processing is performed using the transfer information (for example, a file in CSV format), there is no need for manual input (the account transfer operation for each bank), and calculation errors can be suppressed.

[0127] Note that all or part of the functions of each part of each device included in the payment agency system 1 in the above-described embodiment may be realized by recording a program for realizing these functions on a computer-readable recording medium, reading the program recorded on this recording medium into a computer system, and executing it. Here, the "computer system" is assumed to include hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices.

[0128] Also, the "computer-readable recording medium" refers to a portable medium such as a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a ROM, a CD-ROM, etc., and a storage unit such as a hard disk built in a computer system. Further, the "computer-readable recording medium" refers to something that dynamically holds a program for a short time, like a communication line when transmitting a program via a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line, and also includes something that holds a program for a certain time, like a volatile memory inside a computer system that becomes a server or a client in that case. Also, the above program may be for realizing a part of the above-described functions, and may also be realized in combination with a program already recorded in the computer system for realizing the above-described functions.

[0129] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0130] 1…Payment agency system, 2…Customer company, 3…Payment agency, 4…Customer employee, 5…Account transfer operator, 20…Transfer application device, 30…Payment agency device, 50…Account transfer device, 21…Salary information DB, 22…Application request acquisition unit, 23…Application unit, 31…Application acquisition unit, 32…Transfer processing unit, 33…Account transfer request unit, 34…Transfer result acquisition unit, 51…Request acquisition unit, 52…Account transfer processing unit, 53…Transfer result notification unit

Claims

1. An application acquisition unit that acquires an application for transferring salary to an employee; An account transfer request unit that requests an account transfer to an account transfer service provider based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit; A transfer result acquisition unit that acquires the result of the account transfer requested by the account transfer request unit from the account transfer service provider; A transfer processing unit that executes the transfer of salary to the employee based on the application acquired by the application acquisition unit when the result of the account transfer requested by the account transfer request unit indicates that the account transfer has been successfully performed; A payment agency device comprising the above.

2. The account transfer request unit requests an account transfer to the account transfer service provider triggered by the acquisition of the application by the application acquisition unit. The payment agency device according to Claim 1.

3. The application acquired by the application acquisition unit includes transfer information that at least includes information regarding the transfer amount; The account transfer request unit requests an account transfer to the account transfer service provider based on the transfer information; The transfer processing unit executes the transfer of salary to the employee based on the transfer information. The payment agency device according to Claim 1.

4. A transfer application device that makes an application for transferring salary to an employee; Based on the application made by the transfer application device, an account transfer is requested to an account transfer service provider, and when the result of the account transfer indicates that the account transfer has been successfully performed, the payment agency device according to any one of Claims 1 to 3 that executes the transfer of salary to the employee; An account transfer device that processes the account transfer requested by the payment agency device and notifies the payment agency device of the result of the account transfer; A payment agency system comprising the above.

5. An application acquisition step of acquiring an application for transferring salary to an employee; An account transfer request step of requesting an account transfer to an account transfer service provider based on the application acquired in the application acquisition step; A transfer result acquisition step of acquiring the result of the account transfer requested in the account transfer request step from the account transfer service provider; If the result of the account transfer requested in the account transfer request process indicates that the account transfer was successfully performed, based on the application obtained in the application acquisition process, a transfer process step for executing the salary transfer to the employee is performed, and A payment agency method having the above.

6. On a computer, An application acquisition step of acquiring an application for salary transfer to an employee; An account transfer request step of requesting an account transfer to an account transfer operator based on the application obtained in the application acquisition step; A transfer result acquisition step of acquiring the result of the account transfer requested in the account transfer request step from the account transfer operator; If the result of the account transfer requested in the account transfer request step indicates that the account transfer was successfully performed, based on the application obtained in the application acquisition step, a transfer process step for executing the salary transfer to the employee is performed, and A program to be executed.

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