SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROCESSING TRANSACTIONS FROM CRYPTO WALLETS

Abstract

1. A computer-implemented method for processing a transaction using cryptocurrency, the method comprising: receiving an authorization request from a merchant for the transaction; detokenizing a consumer token to recover a crypto identifier; determining a crypto wallet entity associated with the crypto identifier; forwarding the authorization request and the crypto identifier to the crypto wallet entity; receiving a transaction approval message from the crypto wallet entity; and forwarding the transaction approval message to an acquirer and sending a settlement notification message to a clearing bank to settle the transaction between the crypto wallet entity and the acquirer.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates to a system and method for processing transactions from crypto wallets, a method for generating consumer tokens, and a transaction system for processing transactions using cryptocurrencies.

[0002] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit of UK Patent Application No. 2216234.1 filed November 1, 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference for all purposes. [Background technology]

[0003] A cryptocurrency wallet is a device or program that holds the public and / or private keys needed to perform cryptocurrency transactions and may additionally provide functionality for performing encryption or signing operations.

[0004] Cryptocurrency wallets ("crypto wallets") come in many forms, including paper wallets, where keys are written out on paper, hardware wallets, where cryptographic keys are stored in a device such as a small drive that can be plugged into a computer when a transfer is needed, and online wallets, where keys are stored in an app or other software. Paper wallets and hardware wallets offer greater protection from malicious users than online wallets, but they also have more limited functionality and are more susceptible to loss.

[0005] Crypto wallets keep users' private keys (i.e., the passwords that give users access to their cryptocurrencies) relatively safe (which depends on the security of the wallet) and accessible. Wallets such as these allow users to send and receive cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.

[0006] Unlike a regular wallet, which can hold actual cash, a crypto wallet does not technically store the cryptocurrency assets themselves. Instead, such storage objects are located on the blockchain (addresses) and can only be accessed with a private key. A user's public / private key proves their ownership of the cryptocurrency and allows them to carry out transactions.

[0007] Cryptocurrencies and crypto wallets have grown in popularity over the past few years, creating a growing need for solutions that allow consumers to complete payment transactions for goods and services offered in fiat currency using the cryptocurrency balances in their crypto wallets.

[0008] Although there are several card-based solutions on the market that allow consumers to pay for goods and services via cryptocurrency transaction cards, consumers are generally unable to conduct e-commerce and contactless payment transactions using their mobile crypto wallets without registering for a crypto transaction card.

[0009] The present disclosure is designed to address and alleviate the above-mentioned problems. Summary of the Invention

[0010] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer-implemented method for processing a transaction using cryptocurrency, the method including: receiving an authorization request from a merchant for the transaction, the authorization request including a consumer token, the consumer token representing a tokenized crypto identifier associated with a consumer account at a crypto wallet entity; detokenizing the consumer token to recover the crypto identifier; determining the crypto wallet entity associated with the crypto identifier; forwarding the authorization request and the crypto identifier to the crypto wallet entity; receiving a transaction approval message from the crypto wallet entity; and forwarding the transaction approval message to an acquirer and sending a settlement notification message to a clearing bank to settle the transaction between the crypto wallet entity and the acquirer.

[0011] The present disclosure provides a method for processing transactions using cryptocurrencies, where a consumer token is associated with an identifier associated with a consumer's crypto wallet. The crypto wallet is effectively treated as the issuer by a conventional transaction infrastructure, and the transaction infrastructure can be connected to the crypto wallet entity, such as a single blockchain network that holds the consumer / cardholder's cryptocurrency account details, or can be a crypto exchange platform such as Coinbase®. The transaction can be processed by forwarding an approval message to the acquirer and clearing bank as soon as the approval message for the transaction is received from the crypto wallet entity, thereby allowing the transaction to be processed without waiting for a blockchain update. Typically, an acknowledgement can be received on a timescale of the order of hundreds of milliseconds.

[0012] Thus, this method of the first aspect of the present disclosure allows a consumer to select a cryptocurrency (Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.) from their mobile wallet app, issue a balance check API call to view their balance for that cryptocurrency, and make a payment in fiat to a merchant (e-commerce or contactless).

[0013] The consumer's account at the crypto wallet entity may contain cryptographic keys to access the consumer's cryptocurrency assets on a blockchain.

[0014] The method may further include settling the transaction between the crypto wallet entity and the acquirer in fiat currency.

[0015] The tokenized crypto identifier may include a wallet ID, which may be a unique identifier associated with the consumer account. Alternatively, the tokenized crypto identifier may include an identifier selected from one of: a consumer email address, a consumer identifier, a wallet address, or a domain name.

[0016] The transaction may be processed in a digital enablement system within a transaction infrastructure, the digital enablement system may be configured to support tokenized transactions, and the method may include routing the transaction between a crypto wallet entity and the acquirer.

[0017] The crypto wallet entity can include a crypto wallet host application configured to interact with the transaction infrastructure, and the method can include onboarding the crypto wallet host application to the digitally enabled system as an issuer entity.

[0018] The transaction infrastructure can include an issuer processor device configured to communicate with a host application of the crypto wallet, and the method can include forwarding the authorization request and crypto identifier to the issuer processor device for further transmission to the host application of the crypto wallet.

[0019] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer-implemented method, the method including: generating a consumer token; mapping the consumer token to a crypto identifier associated with a consumer account at a crypto wallet entity; and transmitting the consumer token to a consumer computing device to authorize the consumer to access the consumer account at the crypto wallet entity to make a transaction.

[0020] A second aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for digitizing a crypto wallet entity for use within a transaction infrastructure by mapping a consumer token to a crypto identifier associated with the consumer account in the crypto wallet entity and sending the consumer token to the consumer's computing device (e.g., a wallet app running on a smart device) for use in a transaction.

[0021] The consumer token may be in a format defined for an issued transaction card account number within a transaction card account system. In particular, the consumer token may comprise a 16-digit decimal number.

[0022] The crypto identifier may include an identifier selected from: a wallet ID, which is a unique identifier associated with the consumer account, a consumer email address, a consumer identifier, a wallet address, or a domain name.

[0023] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a transaction system adapted to process a transaction via a transaction infrastructure, the transaction being between a consumer computing device associated with a crypto wallet entity and a terminal device associated with an acquirer, the crypto wallet entity and the acquirer entity being connected by the transaction infrastructure, the transaction system being adapted to perform the steps of: generating a consumer token; mapping the consumer token to a crypto identifier associated with a consumer account at the crypto wallet entity; and transmitting the consumer token to the consumer computing device to authorize the consumer to access the consumer account at the crypto wallet entity to conduct the transaction.

[0024] The system may be configured to: receive an authorization request from a merchant for the transaction, the authorization request including the consumer token; detokenize the consumer token to recover the crypto identifier; determine the crypto wallet entity associated with the crypto identifier; forward the authorization request and the crypto identifier to the crypto wallet entity; receive a transaction approval message from the crypto wallet entity; and forward the transaction approval message to the acquirer and send a settlement notification message to a clearing bank to settle the transaction between the crypto wallet entity and the acquirer.

[0025] The present disclosure also extends to a computing device comprising a memory and a suitably programmed processor, the computing device being adapted to perform the first or second aspect of the present disclosure.

[0026] It should be noted that the same benefits and advantages as those described in connection with the methods are associated with the systems and devices implementing these methods, and corresponding additional (optional) features noted with respect to the methods above are equally applicable with respect to the respective systems and devices.

[0027] Within the scope of this application, the various aspects, embodiments, examples, or alternatives, and in particular their individual features, described in the preceding paragraphs, claims, and / or the following detailed description and drawings are expressly intended to be treated independently or in any combination. That is, any embodiment and / or features of any embodiment may be combined in any manner and / or combination, unless those features are incompatible. Applicant reserves the right to modify any originally written claim or to write any new claim, including the right to make any originally written claim dependent on and / or incorporate any feature of any other claim, even if not originally claimed in that manner. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0028] One or more embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described, for example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0029] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a distributed transaction architecture using a four-party model. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 illustrates elements of a complex distributed system adapted to implement the transaction architecture of FIG. 1. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary system for enabling digital transactions in the transaction architecture of FIGS. 1 and 2. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system for enabling payments using cryptocurrency assets within a transaction system. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of tokenization and authorization for transactions performed within the transaction system of FIG. [Figure 6a] FIG. 1 illustrates a user experience when conducting a contactless transaction with cryptocurrency at a merchant. [Figure 6b]FIG. 1 illustrates a user experience when conducting a contactless transaction with cryptocurrency at a merchant. [Figure 6c] FIG. 1 illustrates a user experience when conducting a contactless transaction with cryptocurrency at a merchant. [Figure 6d] FIG. 1 illustrates a user experience when conducting a contactless transaction with cryptocurrency at a merchant. [Figure 7a] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a user experience when conducting an e-commerce transaction using cryptocurrency. [Figure 7b] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a user experience when conducting an e-commerce transaction using cryptocurrency. [Figure 7c] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a user experience when conducting an e-commerce transaction using cryptocurrency. [Figure 7d] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a user experience when conducting an e-commerce transaction using cryptocurrency. [Figure 7e] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a user experience when conducting an e-commerce transaction using cryptocurrency. [Figure 7f] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a user experience when conducting an e-commerce transaction using cryptocurrency. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0030] Figure 1 is a block diagram of a typical four-party model for payment transaction schemes. The diagram illustrates the entities within the model and the interactions that occur between the entities operating within the card scheme. Typically, card schemes (payment networks linked to payment cards) are based on one of two models: a three-party model or (as adopted by applicant) a four-party model. The four-party model is further described below in this disclosure.

[0031] A four-party model can be used as the basis for a transaction network. For each transaction, the model includes four entity types: cardholder 1 (also referred to as the "consumer"), merchant 2, acquirer 3, and issuer 4. In this model, cardholder 1 purchases goods or services from merchant 2. Issuer 4 is the bank or any financial institution that issued the card to cardholder 1. Acquirer 3 provides card processing services to merchant 2. The model also includes a central switch 5 through which interactions between issuer 4 and acquirer 3 are routed (the switch is referred to as the "transaction infrastructure"). The switch 5 enables a merchant 2 associated with a particular bank acquirer 3 to accept payment transactions from cardholders 1 associated with a different bank issuer 4.

[0032] A typical transaction between entities in the four-party model can be divided into two main stages: authorization and settlement. Cardholder 1 initiates the purchase of goods or services from merchant 2 using their card. Card and transaction details are sent to issuer 4 via acquirer 3 and switch 5 to authorize the transaction. Cardholder 1 may have provided verification information in the transaction and may in some circumstances be required to go through additional verification processes to verify their identity (e.g., 3-D Secure in the case of remote transactions). Once the additional verification processes are complete, the transaction is authorized.

[0033] Once a transaction between cardholder 1 and merchant 2 is completed, transaction details are submitted by merchant 2 to acquirer 3 for settlement. The transaction details are then routed by acquirer 3 via switch 5 to the appropriate issuer 4. On receipt of these transaction details, issuer 4 provides settlement funds to switch 5, which then forwards the funds to merchant 120 via acquirer 3.

[0034] Separately, Issuer 4 and Cardholder 1 settle the payment between themselves, for which a service fee is paid by Merchant 2 to Acquirer 3 for each transaction, and an interchange fee is paid by Acquirer 3 to Issuer 4 for settling the funds.

[0035] Practical implementations of the four-party system model may involve multiple elements collaborating on specific party roles, especially as we move beyond contact-based interactions between a consumer's card and a merchant terminal to digital implementations that use proxy or virtual cards on user computing devices such as smartphones.

[0036] Figure 2 shows an architecture suitable for cardholder-merchant interaction. For reference purposes, the diagram shows a generic architecture, but also illustrates the elements of the architecture used when a cardholder transacts with a merchant server.

[0037] For traditional transactions, cardholder 1 may use a mobile computing device, such as a payment card 6 or a smartphone 11 adapted for use as a contactless payment device, to conduct a transaction with merchant 2's POS terminal 7. However, in embodiments relevant to this disclosure, the cardholder may use their own computing device (such as a mobile phone handset, tablet, laptop, static PC, or any other suitable computing device (a mobile phone handset or smartphone 11 is shown here)) as well as other computing devices (such as a smartwatch or other wearable device) to act either as a substitute for a physical payment card 6 or as a virtual payment card operating solely in the digital domain. Smartphone 11 may accomplish this with a mobile payment application and digital wallet, as described below. Smartphone 11 may use these to conduct transactions with merchant POS terminal 7 using NFC or another contactless technology, or to make payments in conjunction with its own wallet service, as described below. Additionally or alternatively, for remote transactions, the smartphone 11 may interact with a merchant server 12 representing the merchant 2 via any suitable network connection, such as the public internet, and the connection to the merchant may be provided by an app or application on the computing device.

[0038] The transaction scheme infrastructure (hereinafter simply "transaction infrastructure") 5 not only provides the computing infrastructure necessary to operate the card scheme and provide transaction routing and other messaging to parties such as acquirers 3 and issuers 4, but also provides a wallet service / server 17 to support digital wallets on cardholder computing devices, and optionally an Internet gateway 18 to accept Internet-based transactions for processing by the transaction infrastructure. This Internet gateway 18 may be provided by a payment service provider, and in some configurations the merchant 2 may interact with the Internet gateway without having direct contact with the acquirer. In other embodiments, the wallet service / server 17 may also be provided by a third party, with an appropriate trust relationship with the transaction scheme provider. To support tokenization, there is a token service provider 19 (which is shown as part of the transaction infrastructure 5 but can be provided by a third party with appropriate trust relationships), and the transaction infrastructure 5 can provide a digital enabling service 16 to support the fulfillment of tokenized digital transactions and can interact with other elements of the system to enable transactions to be fulfilled correctly (this digital enabling service can include other elements such as token service providers). A processor 20 associated with the issuer 4 can be provided within the transaction infrastructure 5. This issuer processor device 20 can handle "on behalf" services (e.g., authorization) for the issuer 4.

[0039] For tokenized transactions, the transaction scheme validates the transaction by mapping the cardholder token to its card PAN, checking the status of the token (checking that it is valid and up to date) and using any consumer verification approach, allowing the issuer to approve the transaction in the usual manner.

[0040] Figure 3 illustrates in more detail elements of a transaction infrastructure for supporting digitized payments from mobile devices. The diagram illustrates Applicant's Mastercard Cloud-Based Payment (MCBP) architecture, which is not specific to the invention but is merely illustrative of how the architecture may be used to support a mobile payment application (MPA) 215 on a mobile device (e.g., smartphone 11), where the MPA 215 is shown as contained within a wallet application or digital wallet 41. Such digital wallet 41 may communicate with a wallet service / server 17 (here in the form of a wallet server) to enable management of the MPA 215 and may also be used to request digitization of a payment card 6 for use by the mobile device 11 (whereby the digitized payment card is stored / associated with the digital wallet 41).

[0041] The Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES) 42 performs various functions to support mobile payments and digitized transactions. As noted above, the MDES 42 is merely exemplary; for example, other embodiments may use digitization, tokenization, and provisioning services associated with other transaction processing infrastructures. The wallet server 17 is not shown as part of the MDES 42 and need not be present; for example, it may act as an interface between the mobile device 11 and the MDES 42 in the illustrated example to enable management of the MPA 215, even if the MPA 215 is not embedded within a digital wallet. The MDES 42 may mediate tokenized transactions so that they are processed via the transaction scheme for traditional card transactions. The following functional elements are illustrated within the MDES 42: an Account Enablement System (AES) 43, a Credentials Management System (CMS) 44, a token vault 45, and a Transaction Management System (TMS) 46, which are briefly described below.

[0042] The Account Enabling System (AES) 43 is used in card digitization and user establishment. It interacts with the MPA 215 (here via the wallet server 17) for card digitization requests, adds to the token vault 45 during tokenization, and interacts with the CMS 44 to establish a card profile with associated keys for digital use of the card.

[0043] The Credential Management System (CMS) 44 helps manage cardholder credentials and is the primary system within the MDES 42. The Core System 441 manages synchronization with transaction systems collectively through interactions with the TMS 46 and also manages the channel for AES 43. The Dedicated System 442 provides for delivering the necessary elements to the MPA 215, such as digitized card and credential data and keys in the format required for use. The system can also interact with the Wallet Server 17 for management of mobile payment applications.

[0044] The token vault 45 is a repository for token information (including communications between tokens and associated cards) and is shown here as MDES 42, but may be a separate entity subject to separate controls. In tokenized transaction processing, MDES 42 references the token vault 45, and tokenization of a card results in the creation of a new entry in the token vault 45.

[0045] The Transaction Management System (TMS) 46 is used in processing tokenized transactions. If a transaction is identified as tokenized by the transaction scheme, it is routed to the TMS 46, which de-tokenizes the transaction using the token vault 45. The de-tokenized transaction is then routed to the issuer (represented as the Financial Authorization System (FAS) 47) for authorization in a conventional manner. The TMS 46 also interacts with the CMS 44 to ensure synchronization of cardholder account and credential relationships.

[0046] FIG. 4 illustrates a transaction system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which a cardholder's cryptocurrency account is tokenized using the MDES digital enablement system 42, allowing the cardholder to use the cryptocurrency to transact with merchants for goods / services offered for sale in fiat currency.

[0047] FIG. 4 illustrates the merchant 2, acquirer 3, transaction infrastructure 5, and digital enabling entity 42 described above in FIGS. 1-3.

[0048] Also shown in Figure 4 is a crypto wallet entity 400. The crypto wallet entity can be an online wallet associated with a single blockchain network 402 that holds details of a cardholder's cryptocurrency account, or it can be a crypto exchange platform such as Coinbase® that allows consumers to buy, sell, and store cryptocurrencies across several blockchains.

[0049] The crypto wallet entity includes a crypto wallet app 404 (a type of mobile payment application 215) on the cardholder's mobile device 11, a consumer wallet cryptocurrency account 406 (in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the cryptocurrency is Ethereum), and a crypto wallet host application 408 configured to interact with an issuer processor device 414 configured to handle transaction messages between the transaction infrastructure 5 and the crypto entity 400. Consumers can interact with their cryptocurrency account 406 via the wallet app 404 to place transactions on the blockchain.

[0050] When a consumer engages in a transaction with a merchant using cryptocurrency, the consumer wallet account 406 initiates a sale of the consumer's cryptocurrency to an integrated cryptowallet entity account 410 on the blockchain. The cryptowallet entity account 410 is associated with a fiat currency account 412, which is configured to pay the fiat currency to the merchant acquirer 3 on behalf of the consumer.

[0051] Transaction authorizations are routed between the host application 408 and the digital enabling service 42 via the issuer processor device 414. Note that the host application 408 is treated as a traditional issuer entity by the transaction infrastructure 5 as shown in Figures 1 and 2. As such, the crypto wallet entity 400 will be onboarded onto the transaction infrastructure 5 in the same manner as is done for fiat currency based issuer entities.

[0052] The operation of the transaction system of FIG. 4 is described below with further reference to FIG.

[0053] FIG. 5 shows two process flows: pre-digitization flow 500, where a crypto account is digitized into transaction infrastructure 5, and transaction flow 502, where the digitized crypto account is used to conduct a transaction with a merchant.

[0054] Turning to the pre-digitization flow of Figure 5, the consumer opens their crypto wallet host app on their smartphone and requests that their cryptocurrency wallet account be digitized at S504. The request is sent via the host application and issuer processor device to the digital enabling service 42. The request includes a crypto identifier that identifies the consumer's wallet to the digital enabling service 42. The crypto identifier can be a wallet ID, email address, consumer identifier, wallet address, domain name (e.g., a ".eth" domain name), or any other suitable unique identifier that can be used to identify the consumer's wallet.

[0055] At S506, the cryptowallet account is tokenized by the digital enabling service 42 (by tokenizing the crypto identifier into a consumer token 507), and later when the consumer transacts with the merchant, the transaction is validated within the transaction scheme by mapping the consumer token to its crypto identifier, checking the state of the token (to ensure it is current and valid), and using any consumer verification approach, so that the cryptowallet entity acting as the issuer can approve the transaction.

[0056] At S508, the issuer processor device receives the tokenized crypto-identifier from the digitally enabled service, and the consumer is ready to transact according to transaction flow 502.

[0057] Turning now to transaction flow 502 in FIG.

[0058] At S510, the user wishes to make a transaction at a merchant's location and opens their crypto wallet app to select the cryptocurrency to make a payment to the merchant.

[0059] As part of the transaction, the consumer token 507 (i.e., the tokenized crypto identifier / wallet account information) is sent at S512 as part of an authorization request from the merchant via the acquirer processor 418 to the digital enabling service 42 in the transaction network 5. [Note that the acquirer processor 418 is equivalent to the internet gateway 18 of Figure 2.]

[0060] At S514, the digital enabling service 42 detokenizes the consumer token to recover the crypto identifier, identifies the crypto wallet entity 400 associated with the crypto identifier, and performs various checks (e.g., fraudulent service checks).

[0061] The authorization request (now including the transaction details and crypto identifier) ​​is then sent to the issuer processor device at S515, which forwards the authorization request to the crypto host at S516 without making any decision to approve or reject the transaction.

[0062] At S518, the crypto wallet host validates the consumer's crypto account from the crypto identifier and checks the cryptocurrency balance the consumer has in their account. Assuming the consumer has sufficient funds for the transaction, the crypto wallet host initiates the transaction on the blockchain network.

[0063] At S520, an acknowledgment (indicating approval or rejection of the transaction) is received from the blockchain network and sent to the issuer processor device 414.

[0064] Note that the confirmation received from the blockchain network is only an initial confirmation that the transaction has been initiated on the blockchain and does not necessarily mean that miners in the network have confirmed the transaction. However, the confirmation is received within a few seconds (e.g., within a few hundred milliseconds for the Ethereum network) after the transaction has been initiated by the crypto wallet host, and therefore the transaction proceeds without having to wait for a blockchain update.

[0065] At S522, the issuer processor device 414 forwards the confirmation response to the digital enabling service 42 within the transaction infrastructure 5.

[0066] At S524, the transaction confirmation response is forwarded to the acquirer processor 418, and at S526, the approval response is received.

[0067] When the crypto wallet host initiates a blockchain transaction at S518, the public ledger verifies and confirms the transaction via the network's miners at S528, and confirmation of the cryptocurrency required for the transaction is sent to the consumer wallet account and the integrated crypto wallet entity account. As described above, the blockchain transaction initiates the sale of the consumer's cryptocurrency to the integrated crypto wallet entity account 410 on the blockchain for crediting the transaction infrastructure's cryptocurrency account 410.

[0068] Once the public ledger is updated, the blockchain sends a confirmation of the transaction to the consumer wallet account 406 at S530.

[0069] Once the digital enabling service 42 receives the acknowledgment at S522, a settlement notification message is sent at S532 to the clearing bank 416 (FIG. 4), which settles the transaction between the crypto wallet entity's fiat currency account 412 and the acquirer 3 in fiat currency at S534.

[0070] 6a-6c and 7a-7f illustrate the user experience using crypto as a funding source, shown for contactless transactions (FIG. 6) and e-commerce transactions (FIG. 7).

[0071] In Figure 6a, a consumer / user has a crypto wallet app open on their smartphone, and the home screen displays their cryptocurrency balance and recent transactions. The user then initiates a contactless transaction, and the crypto wallet app displays a "Ready to scan" message (Figure 6b), allowing the user to tap their smartphone to a point-of-sale (PoS) terminal at a merchant. Once the transaction is confirmed, the crypto wallet app then displays a confirmation message screen (Figure 6c), confirming that the transaction has now occurred (0.0058946 ETH / $15.99 at Pizza Plaza). Finally, the user is returned to the wallet app home screen (Figure 6d), which displays their recent transactions and cryptocurrency balance.

[0072] Figures 7a-7f show a user's experience in an e-commerce transaction. In Figure 7a, a user is shown visiting a merchant's website on their smartphone and placing items in a shopping basket. In Figure 7a, the checkout page is shown, with a "Pay with Account" option (button 700).

[0073] If the user selects the Pay with Account button, they are taken to a page offering payment options (7b). As shown in Figure 7b, the user has a fiat bank account and a crypto account to choose from, and selects the crypto account (see checkbox 702).

[0074] In Figure 7c, the crypto wallet app is opened and the user is authenticated.

[0075] In Figure 7d, the crypto wallet app directs the user to a payment screen where the cryptocurrency transaction amount is confirmed along with the fiat currency exchange amount. The user selects the confirm button, initiating the payment via the process described above in connection with Figures 4 and 5.

[0076] In Figure 7e, the crypto wallet app displays a payment confirmation screen, and once the user closes the confirmation (via the close button 704), they are returned to the merchant site (at Figure 7f) indicating that the transaction is complete.

[0077] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the above-described embodiments are exemplary and that further embodiments within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure may be developed by those skilled in the art by starting from the above principles and examples.

Claims

1. 1. A computer-implemented method for processing transactions using cryptocurrency, the method comprising: receiving (512) an authorization request from a merchant (2) for the transaction, the authorization request including a consumer token (507), the consumer token representing a tokenized crypto identifier associated with a consumer account (406) at a crypto wallet entity (400); detokenizing (514) the consumer token (507) to recover the crypto-identifier; determining the crypto wallet entity associated with the crypto identifier; forwarding (516) the authorization request and the crypto identifier to the crypto wallet entity; receiving (520) a transaction approval message from the crypto wallet entity; and forwarding (524) an approval message for the transaction to an acquirer and sending (532) a settlement notification message to a clearing bank (416) to settle the transaction between the crypto wallet entity (400) and the acquirer (3).

2. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the consumer account (406) at the crypto wallet entity (400) contains cryptographic keys for accessing the consumer's cryptocurrency assets on a blockchain (402).

3. 3. The method of claim 1 or 2, comprising settling the transaction between the crypto wallet entity (400) and the acquirer (3) in fiat currency.

4. 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the tokenized crypto identifier comprises a wallet ID, the wallet ID being a unique identifier associated with the consumer account.

5. 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the tokenized crypto identifier comprises one identifier selected from: a consumer email address, a consumer identifier, a wallet address, and a domain name.

6. 6. The method of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the transaction is processed in a digital enabling system within a transaction infrastructure (5), the digital enabling system (16) being configured to support tokenized transactions, the method comprising routing the transaction between a crypto wallet entity and the acquirer.

7. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the crypto wallet entity (400) includes a crypto wallet host application (408) configured to interact with the transaction infrastructure (5), the method including onboarding the crypto wallet host application as an issuer entity to the digital enabling system (16).

8. 8. The method of claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the transaction infrastructure (5) includes an issuer processor device (414) configured to communicate with the crypto wallet host application (408), the method including forwarding the authorization request and the crypto identifier to the issuer processor device (414) for further transmission to the crypto wallet host application.

9. 1. A computer-implemented method comprising: generating a consumer token (507); mapping said consumer token (507) to a crypto identifier associated with a consumer account (406) in a crypto wallet entity (400); and sending the consumer token to a consumer computing device (11) to authorize the consumer to access the consumer account at the crypto wallet entity to make transactions.

10. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the consumer token is in a format defined for an issued transaction card account number within a transaction card account system.

11. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the consumer token comprises a 16-digit decimal number.

12. 12. The method of any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the crypto identifier comprises an identifier selected from: a wallet ID, which is a unique identifier associated with the consumer account, a consumer email address, a consumer identifier, a wallet address, or a domain name.

13. A transaction system adapted to process transactions via a transaction infrastructure (5), the transactions being between a consumer computing device (11) associated with a crypto wallet entity (400) and a terminal device (7) associated with an acquirer (3), the crypto wallet entity (400) and the acquirer (3) being connected by the transaction infrastructure, the transaction system comprising: generating a consumer token (507); mapping the consumer token to a crypto identifier associated with a consumer account (406) in the crypto wallet entity (400); and sending the consumer token (507) to the consumer computing device (11) to authorize the consumer to access the consumer account at the crypto wallet entity to make a transaction.

14. 14. The transaction system of claim 13, comprising: receiving (512) an authorization request from a merchant (2) for the transaction, the authorization request including the consumer token; detokenizing (514) the consumer token to recover the crypto-identifier; determining the crypto wallet entity associated with the crypto identifier; forwarding (516) the authorization request and the crypto identifier to the crypto wallet entity (400); receiving (520) a transaction approval message from the crypto wallet entity; and forwarding (524) an approval message for the transaction to the acquirer and sending a settlement notification message to a clearing bank (416) to settle the transaction between the crypto wallet entity and the acquirer.

15. A computing device comprising a memory and a suitably programmed processor, the computing device being adapted to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 8 or the method of any one of claims 9 to 12.

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