Currency exchange system and currency exchange method

Abstract

In a currency exchange system that incorporates anti-money laundering measures, when a single currency exchange operator manages multiple currency exchange machines, the system is designed to ensure that currency exchange operations with exchange restrictions can be conducted appropriately. [Solution] The vendor server 42 comprises a control unit 42a and a log information holding unit 42b. The control unit 42a instructs each currency exchange machine 10 to perform a response process to refuse the exchange if a specific customer identified based on the read personal identification information read from the IC card reader 16 of each currency exchange machine 10 falls under the category of a person subject to predetermined economic sanctions. The log information holding unit 42b holds log information as stored log information that links the read personal identification information from each currency exchange machine 10, the content of the response process instructed to each currency exchange machine 10 for the specific customer, the date and time the response process was performed, and the exchange machine ID of each currency exchange machine 10.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an exchange system and an exchange method for performing currency exchange from foreign currency to domestic currency and vice versa.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an exchange system that equips a currency exchange machine with a passport reader, reads personal identification information from a passport presented by a customer to identify (specify) the customer, and restricts the amount of exchange and the number of exchanges for the same customer. This exchange system is also configured to reject the exchange when it is determined from the customer's personal identification information that the customer is included in a list of persons requiring attention as a measure against money laundering.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The exchange system of Patent Document 1 only restricts the amount of exchange for the same customer with respect to a single currency exchange machine. Therefore, when the same exchange operator conducts exchange operations through a plurality of currency exchange machines, there is a risk that the same customer may perform exchanges from a plurality of currency exchange machines of the same operator, and the total of the plurality of currency exchange machines may exceed the limit.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide an exchange system and an exchange method that can appropriately perform exchange operations with restrictions across a plurality of currency exchange machines managed by the same exchange operator while taking measures against money laundering.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The exchange system of the present invention is Each of the following is a set of multiple currency exchange machines, each having at least one of two personal identification information readers: a passport reader, which is an image scanner capable of reading passport information including personal identification information contained in a passport presented by a customer; and a card reader, which is capable of reading the personal identification information stored in a storage medium from a card with a storage medium presented by the customer; and each of the following is a set of multiple currency exchange machines, each capable of exchanging foreign currency for domestic currency and vice versa. An information processing device that causes each currency exchange machine to perform a response process related to currency exchange based on the personally identified information read from the personally identified information reader of each currency exchange machine, A currency exchange system equipped with, The aforementioned information processing device is A control unit that, when a specific customer identified based on the personally identifiable information read from each currency exchange machine falls under the category of a person subject to certain economic sanctions, causes each currency exchange machine to perform a response process to refuse to exchange currency to the specific customer. A log information holding unit holds log information that links the personally identifiable information read from each currency exchange machine, the content of the response processing instructed to each currency exchange machine as a response to the specific customer, the date and time the response processing was performed, and the currency exchange machine ID as an identifier for each currency exchange machine. It is equipped with.

[0007] The currency exchange method of the present invention is Each of the following is a set of multiple currency exchange machines, each having at least one of two personal identification information readers: a passport reader, which is an image scanner capable of reading passport information including personal identification information contained in a passport presented by a customer; and a card reader, which is capable of reading the personal identification information stored in a storage medium from a card with a storage medium presented by the customer; and each of the following is a set of multiple currency exchange machines, each capable of exchanging foreign currency for domestic currency and vice versa. An information processing device equipped with a computer, which causes each currency exchange machine to perform a response process related to currency exchange based on the personally identified information read from the personally identified information reader of each currency exchange machine, A currency exchange method applicable to a currency exchange system equipped with the following features: To the aforementioned computer, If a specific customer identified based on the personally identifiable information read from each currency exchange machine falls under the category of a person subject to certain economic sanctions, the step of causing each currency exchange machine to perform a response process that refuses to exchange currency with the specific customer, A step of storing log information as log information, which links the personally identifiable information read from each currency exchange machine, the content of the response processing instructed to each currency exchange machine as a response to the specific customer, the date and time the response processing was performed, and the currency exchange machine ID as an identifier for each currency exchange machine. Make it run. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, as a measure against money laundering, if a specific customer identified based on the personally identifiable information read by each currency exchange machine falls under the category of a person subject to certain economic sanctions, each currency exchange machine can be instructed to perform a response process that refuses to exchange currency with that specific customer. Furthermore, log information linking the personally identifiable information read by each currency exchange machine, the content of the response process instructed to each currency exchange machine as a response to the specific customer, the date and time the response process was performed, and the currency exchange machine ID as an identifier for each currency exchange machine is stored as retained log information. By utilizing this multiple retained log information, it is possible to appropriately perform currency exchange operations with exchange restrictions across multiple currency exchange machines. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] This is a schematic diagram of a currency exchange machine viewed from the front. [Figure 2] This is a diagram illustrating the configuration of an internet system, including a currency exchange system. [Figure 3]It is an explanatory diagram when a customer exchanges foreign currency for domestic currency at a currency exchange machine. [Figure 4] It is an explanatory diagram when a customer exchanges domestic currency for foreign currency at a currency exchange machine. [Figure 5] It is a flowchart of the response process that the currency exchange machine executes for a currency exchange request from a customer. [Figure 6] It is a flowchart of the instruction process to the currency exchange machine executed by the merchant server. [Figure 7] It is a flowchart of integration process 1 of the customer ID executed by the merchant server. [Figure 8] It is a flowchart of integration process 2 of the customer ID executed by the merchant server. [Figure 9] It is a flowchart of the main part of the instruction process in which preventive measures against an abuse form of the reverse exchange type by a specific customer are added to the instruction process in FIG. 6.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments. The present invention includes configurations corresponding to modifications, additions, or deletions made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention with respect to the embodiments.

[0011] (Currency Exchange Machine) FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the currency exchange machine 10 seen from the front. The currency exchange machine 10 is installed, for example, in a main branch of a financial institution such as a bank, and facilities such as airports and tourist facilities where a large number of travelers and business customers come and go. This currency exchange machine 10 can not only exchange foreign currency for domestic currency but also exchange domestic currency for foreign currency.

[0012] A customer who wishes to exchange (hereinafter, the customer before being specified as a specific individual based on the personal identification information described later is referred to as "Customer Ca") first inserts his / her IC card 50 (FIG. 3) into the IC card reader 16 or inserts his / her passport 56 (FIG. 3) into the passport reader 28 which is an image scanner.

[0013] The IC card reader 16 reads data including the personal identification information stored in the IC chip 52 (Fig. 3) of the IC card 50.

[0014] On the other hand, the passport reader 28 reads the personal identification information printed on the passport 56 as an image and converts it into text data by OCR (Optical Character Recognition / Reader). The passport 56, when opened, has a width equivalent to two pages, the left page and the right page. Since the image scanner of the passport reader 28 is sufficient in size to scan the width of one page of the passport 56, the customer Ca opens the passport 56 and inserts the page on which the passport number is described into the passport reader 28 to have the personal identification information of the customer Ca read.

[0015] As the IC card 五十 is inserted into the IC card reader 16 or the passport 56 is inserted into the passport reader 28, various information and menu screens are displayed on the display 12. The customer Ca appropriately selects the desired attribute number on the screen of the display 12 from the numeric keypad 18 and selects and instructs the desired processing regarding the current currency exchange to the currency exchanger 10.

[0016] The IC card 50 is, for example, a bank cash card with an IC chip, a driver's license with an IC chip, a credit card with an IC chip, or a my number card. The passport 56 to be inserted into the passport reader 28 may be either with or without an IC chip. Also, the IC card reader 16 and the passport reader 28 correspond to the personal identification information reader of the present invention.

[0017] It should be noted that there is an unclear "五十" in the original text which might be a typo. It is translated as "五十" here as it is not clear what it should be exactly. If it is an incorrect character, please correct it in the original text for a more accurate translation.Because the IC chip-equipped passport 56 is a different size from the IC card 50, the IC card reader 16 cannot read the data from the IC chip of the IC chip-equipped passport 56. To directly read data from the IC chip of the IC chip-equipped passport 56, an IC chip reader specifically for reading the data from the IC chip of the IC chip-equipped passport 56 can be added to the currency exchange machine 10. The data read from the IC chip reader specifically for the IC chip-equipped passport 56 can be processed in the same way as the data from the IC chip 52 of the IC card 50 read from the IC card reader 16.

[0018] Furthermore, banks and credit card companies have customers who hold magnetic stripe cash cards or magnetic stripe credit cards instead of IC cards 50. In order to enable currency exchange by the currency exchange machine 10 for such customers as well, the currency exchange machine 10 may be equipped with a magnetic stripe card reader that can read the data on the magnetic stripe of a magnetic stripe card, either together with the IC card reader 16 or separately from the IC card reader 16, or the IC card reader 16 may be equipped with a magnetic stripe data reading function.

[0019] When referring to IC cards 50 and magnetic stripe cards collectively, the term "card with storage medium" is used. Furthermore, the information stored on the magnetic stripe, which serves as the storage medium in magnetic stripe cards, includes the customer's personally identifiable information.

[0020] The banknotes and coins that customer Ca intends to exchange are inserted into the banknote slot 20 and coin slot 24, respectively. The exchanged banknotes and coins are discharged from the banknote outlet 22 and coin outlet 26, respectively. Once the exchange process for customer Ca is complete, a receipt containing information about the exchange is printed on it and discharged from the receipt outlet 14, which customer Ca can use to verify the exchange.

[0021] This currency exchange machine 10 is capable of handling both banknotes and coins as the currency of the cash before and after exchange, but it may also be capable of handling only banknotes. In that case, the coin slot 24 and coin outlet 26 are removed from the currency exchange machine 10. Alternatively, coin handling may be limited to when domestic currency (yen) is selected as the currency after exchange, in which case the coin slot 24 is removed from the currency exchange machine 10, leaving only the coin outlet 26.

[0022] (Currency exchange system) Figure 2 is a diagram of the configuration of the Internet system 40, which includes the currency exchange system 48. Currency exchange machines 10a, 10b, ..., 10n refer to n (n is plural) currency exchange machines 10 managed by the same currency exchange company (hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, this company will be referred to as "Company Ba"), and are deployed in multiple different locations (e.g., within each of Company Ba's head office or branches and outside the stores under the jurisdiction of the head office or branches). In addition to financial institutions such as banks, Company Ba also includes specialized currency exchange companies, and may have more than one currency exchange machine 10 in the same location (e.g., the same store or facility). Each of the n currency exchange machines 10 is assigned a currency exchange machine ID as an identifier for mutual identification.

[0023] The economic sanctions information holding server 44 is operated by a designated government agency or quasi-governmental agency (e.g., JCIF (Japan Center for International Financial Information)). The n currency exchange machines 10, the operator server 42 of operator Ba, and the economic sanctions information holding server 44 are connected to the Internet 46. The n currency exchange machines 10 and the operator server 42 constitute the currency exchange system 48 of the embodiment of the present invention. The economic sanctions information holding server 44 may or may not be included as a component of the currency exchange system 48.

[0024] The vendor server 42 further includes a control unit 42a and a log information storage unit 42b. The control unit 42a instructs the currency exchange machine 10 to perform the corresponding response processing for the currency exchange requested by customer Ca. The log information storage unit 42b stores the log information Li2, described later, in its own DB (database). The vendor server 42 is also able to send and receive information necessary for currency exchange operations via the Internet 46 with organizations including the economic sanctions information storage server 44 and affiliated and cooperating financial companies.

[0025] (Exchange of foreign currency to domestic currency) Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating how customer Ca exchanges foreign currency for domestic currency at the currency exchange machine 10. This currency exchange machine 10 can handle exchanges for multiple types of foreign currencies, including US dollars, euros, Chinese yuan, and South Korean won. In this example, the domestic currency is the Japanese yen.

[0026] Customer Ca inserts their IC card 50 into the IC card reader 16 when exchanging currency. The IC card 50 has an IC chip 52 built into it.

[0027] If the IC card 50 is a bank cash card or a credit card with a cash advance function equipped with an IC chip 52, customer Ca can, in addition to receiving the exchanged domestic currency as cash, deposit the exchanged currency into the bank account linked to the IC card 50, or use it to repay a credit card company. Customer Ca can specify the destination for the exchanged currency from the menu screen of the display unit 12. Note that a bank cash card or a credit card with a cash advance function equipped with an IC chip 52 is typically issued by the company Ba itself or by a financial company with which company Ba has a partnership (the same applies to the case in Figure 4 below).

[0028] (Currency exchange from domestic to foreign currency) Figure 4 is an explanatory diagram showing how customer Ca exchanges domestic currency for foreign currency at the currency exchange machine 10. Customer Ca inserts their IC card 50 into the IC card reader 16.

[0029] If the IC card 50 is a bank cash card or a credit card with a cash advance function equipped with an IC chip 52, customer Ca can, in addition to inserting cash as the domestic currency before exchange into the banknote slot 20 or coin slot 24, also use deposits or cash advances from the bank account linked to the IC card 50 as the currency to be exchanged. Customer Ca can select the source of the currency before exchange from the menu screen on the display unit 12.

[0030] (Response processing by currency exchange machine) Figure 5 is a flowchart of the response processing performed by the currency exchange machine 10 in response to a customer's currency exchange request. This response processing is performed by the computer implemented in the currency exchange machine 10. In the following explanation of each step, although the computer is strictly speaking the main entity, for the sake of simplicity, the currency exchange machine 10 will be used as the main entity. The currency exchange machine 10 starts the processing shown in Figure 5 when the IC card reader 16 or passport reader 28 is activated.

[0031] In STEP 100, the currency exchange machine 10 determines whether the personal identification information reader, the IC card reader 16 or the passport reader 28, is reading the presentation medium presented by customer Ca. If the personal identification information reader is the IC card reader 16, the currency exchange machine 10 proceeds to STEP 102; if it is the passport reader 28, the process proceeds to STEP 104.

[0032] In STEP 102, the currency exchange machine 10 reads the personally identifiable information stored as data in the IC chip 52 of the IC card 50 from the IC card reader 16. In STEP 104, the currency exchange machine 10 reads the personally identifiable information printed on the passport 56 from the passport reader 28. In the reading in STEP 104, OCR software is used to convert the personally identifiable information printed on the passport 56 into text data.

[0033] From the data read from the IC chip 52 of the IC card 50, although there are some differences depending on the type of IC card 50 and the issuing company, the following common attributes can be identified: (a1) name, (a2) address, (a3) ​​date of birth, (a4) gender, (a5) nationality, and (a6) ID (e.g., the individual number on a My Number Card and the license number on an IC driver's license are unique and can be used as customer IDs). Even if information is not directly read from the IC chip 52, attributes that can be indirectly obtained by referring to the customer database owned by vendor Ba based on the directly read attribute information can also be included as attributes of personally identifiable information.

[0034] With certain IC cards, other attributes such as (a7) the person's photograph may be obtained directly or indirectly (e.g., a driver's license with an IC chip). The currency exchange machine 10 can also be equipped with an additional camera to determine whether customer Ca is the true owner of the IC card 50 through facial recognition. Furthermore, the person's photograph itself can be used as a customer ID on its own.

[0035] The personal identification information of passport 56 read by passport reader 28 includes the attributes (b1) name, (b2) address, (b3) date of birth, (b4) gender, (b5) nationality, and (b6) ID (passport number), as well as other attributes such as (b7) expiration date and (b8) issue date. The passport number of passport 56 can be used as a customer ID on its own.

[0036] As personally identifiable information, each pair of (a1)-(a5) and (b1)-(b5) has the same attributes, and the personally identifiable information of customer Ca can be determined from either (a1)-(a5) or (b1)-(b5).

[0037] In STEP 106, the currency exchange machine 10 obtains the specific exchange details instructed by customer Ca for this exchange. Customer Ca can specify the exchange details using the numeric keypad 18 from the items displayed on the selection menu screen of the currency exchange machine 10 (e.g., currency to be exchanged, currency to be exchanged, source and destination of the exchange, etc.).

[0038] In STEP 108, the currency exchange machine 10 sends log information Li1 to the service provider server 42. Log information Li1 is linked to the personally identifiable information read in STEP 102 or STEP 104, various attribute information (e.g., exchange amount, etc.) obtained in STEP 106, and additional information. The additional information includes, for example, the type of IC card 50 (e.g., cash card and credit card), the issuing company of the IC card 50, whether the exchange is from foreign currency to domestic currency or from domestic currency to foreign currency, the exchange machine ID as the ID of the currency exchange machine 10, and the date and time of transmission. Instead of the date and time of transmission, the reading date and time from STEP 102 or STEP 104, which is considered to be substantially the same as the date and time of transmission, can also be used.

[0039] In STEP 110, the currency exchange machine 10 waits for instruction Da from the vendor server 42. Upon receiving instruction Da, it proceeds to STEP 112.

[0040] In STEP 112, the currency exchange machine 10 executes the exchange process corresponding to instruction Da. The contents of instruction Da are explained in Figure 6 below.

[0041] (Processing instructions from the vendor's server) Figure 6 is a flowchart of the instruction processing performed by the vendor server 42 to the currency exchange machines 10. In detail, the instruction processing is performed by a computer equipped in the vendor server 42, but for the sake of simplicity, the main entity of each process described below will be simply referred to as the vendor server 42, rather than as the computer of the vendor server 42. The vendor server 42 starts the instruction processing when it receives log information Li1 from one of the currency exchange machines 10.

[0042] In STEP 120, the vendor server 42 determines whether or not log information Li1 has been received. If it has been received, it proceeds to STEP 122; otherwise, it terminates the process.

[0043] In STEP 122, the vendor server 42 identifies customer Ca based on the received log information Li1 (specifically, the attributes related to personally identifiable information within the log information Li1). Hereafter, the identified customer will be referred to as specific customer Pa.

[0044] In STEP 124, the vendor server 42 determines whether or not a specific customer Pa is subject to sanctions. If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 changes instruction Da to instruction Da24 and proceeds to STEP 140; otherwise, it proceeds to STEP 126.

[0045] Instruction Da24 is an instruction to refuse currency exchange to a specific customer Pa because that customer Pa is subject to sanctions, based on the instructions given in Instruction Da.

[0046] The initial value of instruction Da is set as instruction Dai when the instruction process in Figure 6 is initiated. When the instruction process in Figure 6 is initiated, not only instruction Da but also predetermined parameters are reset to their initial values. Instruction Dai instructs the currency exchange machine 10 to authorize the currency exchange to be carried out according to the specifications of the specific customer Pa for this exchange. If instruction Da exits STEP 138 (described later) with a negative result, instruction Da in the next STEP 140 remains at its initial value of instruction Dai.

[0047] This section provides a detailed explanation of how to determine whether a specific customer Pa is subject to sanctions. An example of an economic sanctions information holding server 44 is a server managed by JCIF (Japan Center for International Financial Information). JCIF publishes data on a list of individuals and entities designated as subject to economic sanctions measures such as asset freezing under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act. Specifically, from this list, information such as (c1) name, (c2) address, (c3) date of birth, and (c5) nationality of sanctioned persons can be identified by a notice issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Attributes (c1)-(c5) correspond to the attributes (a1)-(a5) mentioned above.

[0048] Furthermore, (c4) Gender is usually omitted from the list. Also, (c2) Address / Location is often only disclosed, not the entire address / location (e.g., only the country, or only the country and city / town). Economic sanctions such as asset freezes under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act require prohibiting certain individuals from exchanging currency in order to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing.

[0049] The vendor server 42, which is also a computer, can, in order to refer to the list of sanctioned entities in the determination of STEP 124, periodically or whenever it is updated, access the aforementioned JCIF (Japan Center for International Financial Information) information on sanctioned entities as a search engine for the automated inquiry system for sanctioned entities within the vendor server 42, store it in its own memory beforehand, and refer to it. Alternatively, it can download the Excel data uploaded to the Ministry of Finance website, modify its format in part (e.g., change full-width characters to half-width characters and underscores to spaces), store it in its own memory beforehand, and refer to it.

[0050] In STEP 124, the vendor server 42 determines that customer Pa is a sanctioned party if it is listed in the sanctioned party list it referenced. More specifically, it determines the consistency of content between the same attributes of (a1)-(a5) or (b1)-(b5) and (c1)-(c5) as described above, and if all or some of the predetermined multiple attributes match, it can determine that customer Pa is a sanctioned party.

[0051] Furthermore, while the operator Ba can independently decide which specific attributes will be used to determine that a particular customer Pa is a sanctioned party if some attributes match, in order to enhance the effectiveness of money laundering, it is also possible to immediately determine that a particular customer Pa is a sanctioned party if, for example, at least the name matches. The operator server 42 may be configured in advance with priorities set in the order of name, nationality, and date of birth, allowing each operator Ba to decide which attributes to select as matching attributes in order of priority. In addition, if the texts in (a1)-(a5) and (b1)-(b5) are in Japanese (e.g., katakana), they are converted to Romanized text before determining their match with the English texts in (c1)-(c5).

[0052] When the vendor server 42 determines multiple attributes in the aforementioned priority order and uses these attributes to determine whether a specific customer Pa is the same person as a person listed on the sanctions list, although it is extremely rare in probability, there may be cases where, for the attribute with the highest priority, the specific customer Pa matches the person on the sanctions list, but for other lower-priority attributes, the sanctions list is blank or unknown, making it impossible for the vendor server 42 to determine identity. In such cases, the currency exchange system 48 can display instructions such as "Please exchange your currency at the counter" on the display screen 12 of the currency exchange machine 10, guiding the specific customer Pa to exchange their currency at the counter instead of using the currency exchange machine 10.

[0053] Consistency does not mean that the texts are completely identical. Rather, a predetermined standard is established, and if the texts are judged to be identical according to that standard, they are considered substantially identical. In this case, a specific customer Pa may be mistakenly identified as a sanctioned party even though they are not actually one. However, since the number of sanctioned parties on the sanctioned party list is extremely small, the probability of misidentification is low, and the inconvenience to customer Ca due to misidentification is extremely small.

[0054] In STEP 126, the vendor server 42 determines whether the nationality of a specific customer Pa is a restricted nationality. If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 sets instruction Da to instruction Da26 and proceeds to STEP 140; otherwise, it proceeds to the next STEP 128.

[0055] Instruction Da26 instructs the currency exchange machine 10 to refuse to exchange currency because a specific customer Pa has a restricted nationality.

[0056] The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designates countries such as North Korea, Iran, and Syria as restricted countries. If a particular customer (Pa) is a national of one of these restricted countries, that customer (Pa) will be classified as a customer of a restricted nationality. Information on restricted nationalities is provided, for example, by the aforementioned JCIF.

[0057] In STEP 128, the vendor server 42 refers to log information Li2 in its own database. Log information Li2 is a combination of log information Li1 and +β information, as will be described later in STEP 142. +β contains the information of instruction Da that the vendor server 42 instructed in STEP 140 to the other party's currency exchange machine 10, which received log information Li1 in STEP 120.

[0058] Furthermore, the vendor server 42 needs to process the various exchange restrictions for a specific customer Pa, such as the period, number of exchanges, and amount, from STEP 130 onward, not individually for each of the multiple currency exchange machines 10a, 10b, ..., 10n, but as set values ​​for the common period, total number of exchanges, and total amount applied to the entire system. Therefore, the log information Li2 that the vendor server 42 references in STEP 128 will be not only from the currency exchange machine 10 that received the log information Li1 in STEP 120, but from all the log information Li2 originating from all the currency exchange machines 10 in which the specific customer Pa is involved.

[0059] The vendor server 42 can find out the exchange history of a specific customer Pa for at least the immediate vicinity period T28 by referring to log information Li2 in its own database.

[0060] The explanations for STEP 130-138 below are specific to either foreign currency to domestic currency exchange process E1 or domestic currency to foreign currency exchange process E2. The settings for periods T30, T32, T36, T38, number of transactions N32, and amounts M36, M38 explained in STEP 130-138 can be set independently for exchange process E1 or E2. Therefore, the settings for exchange processes E1 and E2 that correspond to each other may be set to the same value or to different values.

[0061] Before proceeding to the STEP 130 process, the vendor server 42 retrieves the corresponding settings, such as the period T30, T32, T36, T38, number of transactions N32, and amount M36, M38, from its own storage device, depending on whether it is performing the currency exchange process E1 or E2.

[0062] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the amount set in STEP 130-138 is set as the amount converted to domestic currency (yen), regardless of whether the exchange process E1 or E2 is performed. Also, the upper limit of the exchange amount is set as an amount including the exchange fee in principle, but it may also be the actual exchange amount excluding the fee.

[0063] In STEP 130, the vendor server 42 determines whether the current currency exchange for a specific customer Pa falls within the time limit period T30. If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 sets instruction Da to instruction Da30 and proceeds to STEP 140; otherwise, it proceeds to STEP 132.

[0064] Instruction Da30 instructs the machine to refuse the exchange because the exchange for the specific customer Pa falls within the time limit period T30. This time limit period T30 may be set only for the current currency exchange machine 10 that customer Pa is attempting to use, or it may be set for all currency exchange machines 10 under the management of operator Ba. If period T30 is set only for the current currency exchange machine 10, it can be set to be shorter than the period T30 set for all currency exchange machines 10 under the management of operator Ba.

[0065] The exchange period restriction T30 (e.g., 10 days) refers to the period during which exchanges from all of the currency exchange machines 10 of the operator Ba will be refused to the same customer. For example, if a specific customer Pa makes an exchange at any of the currency exchange machines 10 of the operator Ba on date (including year) D1, then from the day after D1, including the day after D1, exchanges from all of the currency exchange machines 10 of the operator Ba will be refused to that specific customer Pa for the duration of period T30.

[0066] In STEP 132, the vendor server 42 determines whether the current currency exchange for a specific customer Pa exceeds the limit of N32 transactions within the period T32. If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 sets instruction Da to instruction Da32 and proceeds to STEP 140; otherwise, it proceeds to the next STEP 136.

[0067] Instruction Da32 states that, as instructed by Instruction Da, the current currency exchange for a specific customer Pa exceeds the limit of N32 transactions, and therefore the exchange should be refused.

[0068] The limit on the number of currency exchanges restricts the number of currency exchanges a single customer can make from all of the currency exchange machines 10 operated by the operator Ba within a period T32 (e.g., 1 day) including the day of the current exchange, to a maximum of N32 (e.g., 1 time). This maximum number of exchanges N32 within the period T32 may be set as a limit only for the currency exchange machine 10 in which the specific customer Pa is making the exchange, or it may be set as a limit for all currency exchange machines 10 under the management of operator Ba. Furthermore, the maximum number of exchanges N32 may be set higher in the latter case than in the former case.

[0069] In STEP 136, the vendor server 42 determines whether the amount of currency exchanged from the currency exchange machine 10 for a specific customer Pa exceeds the upper limit M36 of the upper limit for the period T36. If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 sets instruction Da to instruction Da36 and proceeds to STEP 140; otherwise, it proceeds to the next STEP 138.

[0070] In STEP 138, the vendor server 42 determines whether the total amount of currency exchange from vendor Ba's currency exchange machines 10 to a specific customer Pa exceeds the upper limit M38 of the upper limit for the period T38. If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 sets instruction Da to instruction Da38 and proceeds to STEP 140; otherwise, it proceeds to STEP 140 without changing instruction Da, i.e., keeping instruction Da at its initial value Dai.

[0071] Instruction Da38 instructs that the exchange should be refused because the amount of money exchanged for a specific customer Pa from all currency exchange machines 10 of the operator Ba exceeds the maximum amount M38 for the period T38.

[0072] The upper limit in STEP 138 restricts the total amount of currency exchanged from all currency exchange machines 10 of vendor Ba to less than M38 (e.g., 2 million yen) for a specific customer Pa during the most recent period T38 (e.g., 1 day), including the day of the current exchange.

[0073] In this embodiment, T36 = T38 and M36 = M38 are set, but it is also possible to set T36 < T38 and M36 < M38.

[0074] In STEP140, the merchant server 42 transmits the instruction Da to the currency exchange machine 10.

[0075] In STEP142, the merchant server 42 stores the log information Li2 in its own DB. The log information Li2 associates the log information Li1, the instruction Da, and +β. +β includes the customer ID as the identifier of the specific customer Pa and the transmission date and time of STEP140.

[0076] (Integration process 1 of customer ID by merchant server) FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the integration process 1 of the customer ID executed by the merchant server 42. The merchant server 42 performs the integration process 1 of the customer ID between the customer ID derived from the IC card 50 and the customer ID derived from the passport 56. Note that the customer ID derived from the IC card 50 and the customer ID derived from the passport 56 are defined as the customer IDs generated based on the personal identification information read from the IC chip 52 of the IC card 50 and the personal identification information read from the image of the passport 56, respectively.

[0077] In FIG. 7, only the IC card 50 as a card with a storage medium is described, but instead of the IC card 50 alone, a card with a magnetic stripe can be adopted, or a card with a storage medium including both the IC card 50 and the card with a magnetic stripe can be adopted.

[0078] In the currency exchange system 48, there are two methods for obtaining the personal identification information of customer Ca: obtaining the IC chip 52 from the IC card 50 using the IC card reader 16, and obtaining an image from the printout on the passport 56 using the passport reader 28. Therefore, it is possible that the same customer Ca may be assigned a different customer ID in each case. Depending on how the currency exchange machine 10 is used, it is possible to misuse the system by using the passport 56 to perform an exchange that exceeds the limit even though the exchange using the IC chip 52 of the IC card 50 has already exceeded the limit. The process in Figure 7 is a measure to prevent such misuse.

[0079] The customer ID integration process 1 is, in detail, executed by a computer equipped on the vendor server 42, similar to the instruction process in Figure 6. However, for the sake of simplicity, in the following explanation, the vendor server 42 will be described as the entity performing the processing. The vendor server 42 performs integration process 1 periodically, or each time new personal identification information is read by IC acquisition or image acquisition and a new customer ID for IC acquisition or image acquisition is registered.

[0080] In STEP 150, the vendor server 42 classifies the log information Li2 stored in its own DB into log information Li2a if the customer ID is not integrated and the presentation medium is an IC card 50.

[0081] In STEP 152, the vendor server 42 classifies the log information Li2 stored in its own DB into log information Li2b, which is log information Li2 where the customer ID is not integrated and the presented medium is a passport 56.

[0082] In STEP 154, the vendor server 42 compares log information Li2a and log information Lib and selects pairs in which the customer IDs of both differ. Here, pairs in which the customer IDs of both differ mean that they may not have been changed to an integrated customer ID. The vendor server 42 then determines the consistency of one or more predetermined attributes among the multiple attributes of the personal identification information of the pair, and if there is a match, it changes both customer IDs to an integrated customer ID. Furthermore, the vendor server 42 also changes all customer IDs in log information Li2a that have the same customer ID as the customer ID on log information Li2b, and all customer IDs in log information Li2 that have the same customer ID as the customer ID on log information Li2b, to the integrated customer ID.

[0083] To elaborate, typically, the data formats of passport 56 and IC card 50 are different. The data format of passport 56 is Roman characters, while the data format of a bank cash card (IC card 50) is half-width katakana. In such cases, the vendor server 42 processes one data format to the other before comparing log information Li2a and log information Lib in STEP 154. For example, the half-width katakana on the cash card is converted to Roman characters to match the data format of passport 56.

[0084] In STEP 156, the vendor server 42 determines whether there are any pairs of log information Li2a and log information Li2b where the customer IDs are different and the matching of personal identification information has not been determined. If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 returns to STEP 154; otherwise, it terminates the process.

[0085] (Customer ID integration process by vendor server 2) Figure 8 is a flowchart of the customer ID integration process 2 performed by the vendor server 42. The vendor server 42 performs integration process 2 between customer IDs generated based on the personal identification information of IC cards 50 that differ in either type (e.g., cash card and credit card) or issuing company. In Figure 8, as in Figure 7, for the sake of simplicity, the vendor server 42 is described as the entity responsible for each process.

[0086] Although Figure 8 only describes the IC card 50 as a card with a storage medium, it is also possible to apply a striped card instead of the IC card 50 alone, or to all cards with storage mediums (both the IC card 50 and striped cards).

[0087] If a separate customer ID is assigned to each IC card 50 depending on its type or issuing company, it is conceivable that this could be misused by a customer Ca using multiple IC cards 50 of different types or issuing companies to make currency exchanges exceeding the limit. Integrated processing 2 is a countermeasure against such misuse.

[0088] The vendor server 42 executes integration process 2 periodically, or when the currency exchange machine 10 receives an exchange request from a new IC card 50 and it becomes necessary to register a new customer ID derived from the IC card 50. In the latter case, the log information Li2c described later will show that a temporary customer ID is set for the new customer ID, then STEP 160 and STEP 162 are executed, and as soon as STEP 162 is completed, integration process 2 is terminated without executing the judgment in STEP 164.

[0089] In STEP 160, the vendor server 42 searches its own database for pairs of log information Li2 that have different customer IDs and different types or issuing vendors, and names one and the other log information Li2 of the pair as log information Li2c and Li2d, respectively.

[0090] In STEP 162, the vendor server 42 compares log information Li2c and log information Li2d to determine if there is a match for a predetermined single or multiple attribute of the personal identification information between the two. If there is a match, it changes the customer IDs of both to a unified customer ID. The vendor server 42 then changes all customer IDs of log information Li2 that have the same customer ID as the customer ID on log information Li2c, and all customer IDs of log information Lib that have the same customer ID as the customer ID on log information Li2b, to the same unified customer ID.

[0091] In STEP 164, the vendor server 42 determines whether there are any pairs of log information Li2c and log information Li2d where the customer ID is different and the matching of personal identification information has not been determined. If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 returns to STEP 154; otherwise, it terminates the process.

[0092] Figure 9 is a flowchart of the main part of the instruction processing in Figure 6, with the addition of measures to prevent the misuse of the reverse currency exchange type by a specific customer Pa. Compared to the instruction processing in Figure 6, STEP 170-STEP 174 has been added between STEP 128 and STEP 130, and the other processes are the same as those in Figure 6, so they are not shown.

[0093] Those who intend to misuse currency exchange may attempt to launder money by repeatedly exchanging foreign currency for domestic currency and domestic currency for foreign currency in a short period of time, even if it incurs high fees to the exchange agent Ba. Steps 170-174 are processes that incorporate preventative measures against this. Specifically, if the same person is deemed to be performing a reverse exchange in a short period of time, and after performing one type of exchange within the same specified period T70, they perform the other type of exchange, the various settings for the other exchange are configured to stop the transaction if the combined limits for both transactions are reached.

[0094] Steps 170-174, which were added in Figure 9, are executed after the integration process (customer ID matching) shown in Figures 7 and 8 is performed to ensure effectiveness. That is, the integration process shown in Figures 7 and 8 is performed each time a new storage medium card (stripe card, IC card 50, or passport 56) is exchanged and a new customer ID is assigned to the customer Pa of the new storage medium card.

[0095] In STEP 170, the vendor server 42 determines whether a specific customer Pa has already made a counter-exchange for the current exchange within the immediate vicinity period T70, including today (the day of the current exchange). If the determination is positive, the vendor server 42 proceeds to STEP 172; otherwise, it proceeds to STEP 174.

[0096] The opposite exchange to the current exchange means, if the current exchange is from domestic currency to foreign currency, then from foreign currency to domestic currency; and if the current exchange is from foreign currency to domestic currency, then from domestic currency to foreign currency. A specific customer Pa may repeat one of the exchanges (foreign currency to domestic currency or domestic currency to foreign currency) not just once, but two or three times within a predetermined period T70. In that case, the vendor server 42 counts and stores the number of repetitions, and as the number of repetitions increases, it may gradually decrease the exchange limit settings (e.g., the upper limits M36 and M38 in STEP 136 and 138 described later), or it may take measures to limit the repetition to just once.

[0097] The predetermined period T70 is typically set to be the same as T32 used in the processing in STEP 132, but T70 ≠ T32. For example, if T70 = T32 = 1 or 2 days, a specific customer Pa will be restricted from making a counter-exchange, such as exchanging their currency for foreign currency (e.g., dollars) or domestic currency (e.g., yen) using any of the currency exchange machines 10 by the same day or the next day (equivalent to selling stocks), and then exchanging their domestic currency for foreign currency (equivalent to buying stocks). Such counter-exchanges are often used for money laundering, although not all of them are, so in this embodiment, they are uniformly restricted (including prohibited) even for exchanges made by good-faith customers Pa. Even if a good-faith customer Pa's counter-exchange is temporarily restricted in this case, they can wait for T70 to elapse and then make a counter-exchange within the normal exchange limits.

[0098] In STEP 172, the vendor server 42 reads the settings for each of the currency exchange restrictions to prevent misuse. Meanwhile, in STEP 174, the vendor server 42 reads the settings for each of the currency exchange restrictions for normal currency exchange.

[0099] As explained earlier in Figure 6, before proceeding to STEP 130, the currency exchange machine 10 reads from its memory each of the exchange restriction settings for STEP 130-138, such as the period T30, T32, T36, T38, the number of transactions N32, and the amount M36, M38, depending on whether the current exchange is an exchange process E1 (exchange from foreign currency to domestic currency) or E2 (exchange from domestic currency to foreign currency). In Figure 9, this reading corresponds to the reading of each setting value for the exchange restriction for normal exchanges in STEP 174 (specifically, the processing in STEP 130-STEP 138). In other words, each setting value read in STEP 174 is the setting value when a specific customer Pa is not performing an inverse exchange.

[0100] In contrast, the settings read in STEP 172 are those used when a specific customer Pa is attempting to perform a reverse exchange. As a measure to prevent exchange abuse, the settings read in STEP 172 are set to values ​​that reduce the likelihood of a specific customer Pa committing abuse compared to the settings for normal exchanges in STEP 174. Specifically, for example, the upper limits M36 and M38 in STEP 136 and 138 are set significantly lower than those for normal exchanges.

[0101] After executing STEP 172 or 174, the vendor server 42 proceeds to STEP 130.

[0102] (supplement) Each currency exchange machine 10 in the embodiment is equipped with both an IC card reader 16 and a passport reader 28 as a specific information reader. However, the currency exchange machine of the present invention only needs to be equipped with at least one of the IC card reader 16 and the passport reader 28, and the other of the IC card reader 16 and the passport reader 28 may be omitted in each currency exchange machine 10.

[0103] In this invention, the "most recent first period including the present time for a specific customer" corresponds in the embodiment to the most recent period T36 described in STEP 136. The first upper limit corresponds to the upper limit M36 described in STEP 136.

[0104] In this embodiment, the "second most recent period including the current currency exchange for a specific customer" corresponds to the period T32 described in STEP 132 (e.g., the most recent 1st, 2nd, or 3rd day including the current day). In this embodiment, the second upper limit number of transactions corresponds to the upper limit number of transactions N32 described in STEP 132 (e.g., 3 times for 1 day, and 3 times for 2 days).

[0105] In this invention, the "third period" in "the current exchange date is after the expiration of the first period and the third period has elapsed" corresponds to the period T30 described in STEP 130 in the embodiment. In the embodiment, the period T30 is, for example, 10 days, but the business operator Ba can also set other periods such as one week for the period T30.

[0106] My Number Cards or IC-equipped driver's licenses can be used as identification when customers open new accounts at financial institutions (e.g., banks and securities companies). In view of this, the control unit 42a can also, when a customer presents a My Number Card or IC-equipped driver's license as a card with a storage medium, take a picture of them with the built-in camera to acquire an image, or acquire customer identification information (e.g., license number), and use the acquired information as identification when the specific customer opens a new financial institution account or applies for a new credit card.

[0107] A supplementary explanation is provided for STEP 102 and 104 in Figure 5 of the embodiment. The currency exchange machine 10 reads the IC chip 52 of the IC card 50 and the personal identification information of the passport 56 from the IC card reader 16 and passport reader 28, respectively. The personal identification information that the currency exchange machine 10 reads here is limited to the extent that the law permits it to read and store for anti-money laundering purposes. The currency exchange machine 10 is designed so that it cannot read any other personal information, or if it reads it, it is immediately deleted so that it cannot be stored on itself or transmitted to other devices.

[0108] In this embodiment, multiple currency exchange machines 10 are described as automatic currency exchange machines operated and managed by the business operator Ba. However, in the case of a financial institution such as a bank, currency exchange services are usually provided not only by the automatic currency exchange machines 10 but also by manual currency exchange machines at the counter. In such cases, the business operator server 42 receives log information Li1 from the counter currency exchange machine (STEP 120), performs the processing shown in Figure 6, and then returns instruction Da to the counter currency exchange machine (STEP 140). When the counter currency exchange machine receives instruction Da from the business operator server 42 (Figure 5 / STEP 110), it displays the contents of instruction Da on its display, and the counter staff performs the processing corresponding to the displayed contents for the customer Ca. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0109] 10...Currency exchange machine, 16...IC card reader (specific information reader), 28...Passport reader (specific information reader), 42...Vendor server, 42a...Control unit, 42b...Log information storage unit, 44...Economic sanctions information storage server, 46...Internet, 48...Currency exchange system, 50...IC card (card with storage medium), 52...IC chip (storage medium), 56...Passport.

Claims

1. Each of the following is a set of multiple currency exchange machines, each having at least one of two personal identification information readers: a passport reader, which is an image scanner capable of reading passport information including personal identification information written in a passport from a passport presented by a customer; and a card reader, which is capable of reading the personal identification information stored in a storage medium from a card with a storage medium presented by the customer; and each of the following is a set of multiple currency exchange machines, each capable of exchanging foreign currency for domestic currency and vice versa. An information processing device that causes each currency exchange machine to perform a response process related to currency exchange based on the personally identified information read from the personally identified information reader of each currency exchange machine, A currency exchange system equipped with, The aforementioned information processing device is A control unit that, when a specific customer identified based on the personally identifiable information read from each currency exchange machine falls under the category of a person subject to certain economic sanctions, causes each currency exchange machine to perform a response process to refuse to exchange currency to the specific customer. A log information holding unit holds log information that links the personally identifiable information read from each currency exchange machine, the content of the response processing instructed to each currency exchange machine as a response to the specific customer, the date and time the response processing was performed, and the currency exchange machine ID as an identifier for each currency exchange machine. A currency exchange system equipped with this feature.

2. The currency exchange system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit causes the currency exchange machine to perform a response process that limits the total amount of currency exchange for the most recent first period, including the present time, to the specific customer, based on the log information held in the log information holding unit, to within a first upper limit for the entire group of currency exchange machines.

3. The currency exchange system according to claim 2, wherein the total amount and the first upper limit during the first period are set independently for cases where the specific customer exchanges foreign currency to domestic currency and cases where the specific customer exchanges domestic currency to foreign currency.

4. The currency exchange system according to claim 3, wherein if the specified customer performs one of the following exchanges—exchanging foreign currency to domestic currency and exchanging domestic currency to foreign currency—during the same first period, and then performs the other exchange, the total amount of the other exchange is set to be lower in domestic currency terms than the total amount of the first exchange.

5. The currency exchange system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit causes the currency exchange machine to perform a response process that limits the number of currency exchanges for the specific customer in the most recent second period, including the current exchange, to within a second upper limit for the entire number of currency exchange machines, based on the log information held in the log information holding unit.

6. The currency exchange system according to claim 2, wherein the control unit causes the currency exchange machines to perform a response process that rejects currency exchange for the specific customer from the expiration date of the first period to the third period, based on the log information held in the log information holding unit.

7. The currency exchange system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit refers to predetermined nationality sanctions information, and when the nationality of the specific customer is found to be a sanctioned country in the nationality sanctions information, causes each currency exchange machine to perform a response process that refuses to exchange currency.

8. The currency exchange system according to claim 1, wherein the card with the storage medium is a magnetic stripe card or an IC card.

9. The currency exchange system according to claim 8, wherein the control unit, when the card with a storage medium is a magnetic stripe cash card, an IC-equipped cash card, a magnetic stripe credit card, or an IC-equipped credit card, allows the specific customer to allocate deposits or cash advances from the account associated with the card with a storage medium as the domestic currency before exchange, instead of cash.

10. The currency exchange system according to claim 8, wherein the control unit, when the card with a storage medium is a magnetic stripe cash card, an IC-equipped cash card, a magnetic stripe credit card, or an IC-equipped credit card, allows the specified customer to use the exchanged currency to repay a deposit or cash advance in the account associated with the card with the storage medium, instead of cash.

11. The currency exchange system according to claim 8, wherein the control unit, when the card with a storage medium is a My Number Card or an IC-equipped driver's license, allows the personally identifiable information read from the card with a storage medium to be used as proof of identity when the specified customer opens a new financial institution account or applies for a new credit card.

12. The currency exchange system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the control unit uses the retained log information generated from the storage medium card as first retained log information, and the retained log information generated from the passport as second retained log information, compares the personal identification information of the first retained log information and the second retained log information whose customer IDs are mutually different, and if there is a match in one or more predetermined attributes of the personal identification information, changes the customer ID of the first retained log information and the customer ID of the second retained log information to a combined customer ID.

13. The retained log information generated from the storage medium-equipped card includes the type of the storage medium-equipped card and the attributes of the issuer. The control unit, The currency exchange system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the personal identification information between retained log information differs in either the type of storage medium card or the issuer, and is assigned a different customer ID, and if there is a match in one or more predetermined attributes of the personal identification information between the retained log information, the customer IDs of both retained log information are changed to a unified customer ID.

14. Each of the following is a set of multiple currency exchange machines, each having at least one of two personal identification information readers: a passport reader, which is an image scanner capable of reading passport information including personal identification information written in a passport from a passport presented by a customer; and a card reader, which is capable of reading personal identification information stored in a storage medium from a card with a storage medium presented by the customer; and each of the following is a set of multiple currency exchange machines, each capable of exchanging foreign currency for domestic currency and vice versa. An information processing device equipped with a computer, which causes each currency exchange machine to perform a response process related to currency exchange based on the personally identified information read from the personally identified information reader of each currency exchange machine, A currency exchange method applicable to a currency exchange system equipped with the following features: To the aforementioned computer, If a specific customer identified based on the personally identifiable information read from each currency exchange machine falls under the category of a person subject to certain economic sanctions, the step of causing each currency exchange machine to perform a response process that refuses to exchange currency with the specific customer, A step of storing log information as log information, which links the personally identifiable information read from each currency exchange machine, the content of the response processing instructed to each currency exchange machine as a response to the specific customer, the date and time the response processing was performed, and the currency exchange machine ID as an identifier for each currency exchange machine. A method of currency exchange that enables this process.

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