Hedge fund trading management system

Abstract

The goal is to efficiently solicit as many investors as possible while complying with the restrictions on the number of investors that can be solicited for private placement products with a small number of investors. [Solution] A hedge fund trading management system comprising: a customer information storage unit that stores customer information; and a fund-specific investment target management unit that manages the customer for each fund to be solicited, wherein the fund-specific investment target management unit stores the customer to whom an investment has been solicited in a way that classifies the customer into at least two types, including unsold customers, who are customers who have not yet made a contract on the calculation base date and whose investment has not yet been finalized, and settled customers, who have made a contract and whose investment has been finalized, whose investment has not yet been finalized and whose investment has not yet been finalized, with the calculation base date as a variable, and calculates a number obtained by subtracting the sum of the number of unsold customers and the number of settled customers for a predetermined fund from the maximum number of people simultaneously solicited for the predetermined fund.

Description

Technical Field

[0005] , ,

[0001] The present invention relates to a trading management system for hedge funds.

Background Art

[0002] The Japanese government aims to achieve a nation of asset management. In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in asset management, especially in Japan, and the number of people showing interest in investment has been increasing regardless of income, region, occupation, or age. Here, hedge funds, which are generally sold as financial products overseas, have several sales-related restrictions, such as a large minimum trading unit of usually several million US dollars, many being limited to professional investors as the sales target, and being a small-scale private placement product rather than a publicly offered product like an investment trust. Therefore, for Japanese general investors to purchase hedge funds based on domestic law using Japanese, the current situation is that the hurdle is higher compared to other financial products.

[0003] Here, in order to make hedge funds a financial product that is a general investment target in Japan, for example, it is not easy to manage a conventional system for small-scale private placement products (currently, there is a restriction that only up to 49 people can be sold in three months) so as not to deviate from the above conditions. Also, in order to induce investors with a high purchase probability, a system has been proposed to determine the inducement conditions based on past purchase histories and the like.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Here, the applicant envisions a system that centrally manages individual investor orders and places them as orders for the selling financial institution, in order to enable the sale of overseas hedge funds to general Japanese investors in smaller units (currently, the minimum purchase unit is US$100,000). From the perspective of the overseas hedge fund management company, this would mean that the Japanese financial institution (the applicant) selling the hedge funds would then receive further subdivided orders from individual investors. However, in order to efficiently sell hedge funds in relatively small units, a hedge fund trading management system is needed that can efficiently solicit as many investors as possible while complying with the restrictions on the number of people that can be solicited for small-scale private placement products. Furthermore, it would be preferable to have a system that allows investors who find it difficult to contribute the current minimum transaction amount all at once to purchase a cumulative hedge fund by dividing the investment into multiple installments (for example, dividing US$100,000 into 10 installments of US$10,000 each month), enabling them to purchase in smaller amounts each month.

[0006] This invention was made in view of the current situation and provides a trading management system for hedge funds that can efficiently solicit as many investors as possible while complying with the restrictions on the number of people that can be solicited for small-scale private placement products. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A hedge fund trading management system according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a customer information storage unit that stores information of customers who are solicited to invest, The company has a fund-specific investment target management department that manages the aforementioned customers according to the fund being solicited, The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management department stores, in a manner that distinguishes customers from other customers, based on an arbitrary calculation date, customers whose period from the solicitation date to the calculation date falls within the first period, using the solicitation date as a variable. The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management department calculates the number of customers that can be solicited for the aforementioned fund on the calculation reference date by subtracting the number of customers within the aforementioned framework for the aforementioned fund from the maximum number of people who can be simultaneously solicited for the aforementioned fund, The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management unit further includes a prospective customer storage unit capable of storing multiple prospective customers, in order of priority, who are expected to be solicited to invest in the aforementioned predetermined fund. The Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department, with respect to the predetermined fund, calculates a third calculation date, which is the nearest future calculation date from the first calculation date on which the number of solicitable customers becomes equal to or greater than the rank of the first prospective customer, as the date on which it becomes possible to solicit the first prospective customer to the predetermined fund.

[0008] Such a hedge fund trading management system can calculate the number of solicitable customers that meet the solicitation limits for a given fund's limited-entry private placement product, regardless of whether it is a past, present, or future calculation date. Therefore, this hedge fund trading management system can calculate not only the current availability information for a given fund, but also how much availability will become available in the future. Users of such a hedge fund trading management system can understand when and how many solicitation slots will become available, while meeting the solicitation limits for limited-entry private placement products, and efficiently solicit as many investors as possible. In addition, the fund-specific investment target management department can register prospective customers and reserve solicitation slots for those prospective customers, or reserve future available slots. Furthermore, this hedge fund trading management system can quickly recognize the expected date on which solicitation will become possible for prospective customers.

[0009] A hedge fund trading management system according to a second aspect of the present invention includes a customer information storage unit that stores information of customers who are solicited to invest, The company has a fund-specific investment target management department that manages the aforementioned customers according to the fund being solicited, The fund-specific investment target management unit stores the customers who have been solicited to invest in a predetermined fund in a way that allows them to be classified as a variable, into at least two types, including: uncontracted customers, who are customers whose investment in the predetermined fund is not finalized on the calculation base date, and who have finalized their investment in the predetermined fund, whose investment is finalized on the calculation base date, from the date of solicitation to the calculation base date onwards within the first period; and finalized customers, who are customers whose investment in the predetermined fund is finalized from the date of finalization to the calculation base date onwards within the first period. The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management department calculates the number of customers that can be solicited for the aforementioned fund on the calculation reference date by subtracting the sum of the number of unsold customers and the number of sold customers for the aforementioned specified fund from the maximum number of people that can be simultaneously solicited for the aforementioned specified fund, thereby ensuring that the number does not exceed the limit during any solicitation period.

[0010] Such a hedge fund trading management system can calculate the number of potential customers that can be solicited for a given fund, in accordance with the solicitation limits for small-scale private placement products, for any calculation date in the past, present, or future. Therefore, such a hedge fund trading management system can calculate not only the current availability of a given fund, but also how much availability will become available in the future. Furthermore, users of the hedge fund trading management system can understand when and how many solicitation slots will become available, while complying with the solicitation limits for small-scale private placement products, and efficiently solicit as many investors as possible. In particular, the hedge fund trading system relating to the second point calculates the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations within the first period by considering both the solicitation date and the settlement date. This avoids a rapid increase in the total number of solicitation and settlement dates in a short period, allowing sales staff to allocate ample time to explain to customers at the time of settlement.

[0011] Furthermore, for example, in the hedge fund trading management system relating to the first and second perspectives, the fund-specific investment target management unit may, with respect to the predetermined fund, calculate a second calculation date, which is the closest future calculation date from the first calculation date on which the number of solicitable customers becomes 1 or more, as the planned date on which new solicitations become possible for the predetermined fund, if the number of solicitable customers is 0 when the calculation date is set as the first calculation date.

[0012] Users of such a hedge fund trading management system can quickly understand the expected date when new solicitations will become possible for a given fund if the number of customers who can be solicited for that fund is 0 on the first calculation date (for example, the present time), thus enabling efficient solicitation of hedge funds, which are privately placed products for a small number of people. The number of customers who can be solicited for a given fund on the first and second calculation dates is calculated using either the number of customers within the framework related to the first aspect of the invention, or the sum of uncontracted and contracted customers related to the second aspect of the invention.

[0013] Furthermore, for example, in a hedge fund trading management system relating to the second perspective, if the number of solicitable customers for a given fund is 0 when the calculation reference date is set as the first calculation reference date, the fund-specific investment target management unit may calculate the date closest to the first calculation reference date that exceeds the first period from the solicitation date of at least one of the unsold customers on the first calculation reference date, as the estimated date on which new solicitations for the given fund become possible.

[0014] Users of such a hedge fund trading management system can recognize the expected date on which new solicitations for a given fund become possible as the estimated date on which an open slot will become available if any of the unsold customers remain unsold for an extended period from the solicitation date. Therefore, users of such a hedge fund trading management system can prepare for new solicitations while also considering the possibility that no open slots may become available on the estimated date.

[0015] Furthermore, for example, in a hedge fund trading management system relating to the second perspective, if the number of solicitable customers for a given fund is 0 when the calculation reference date is set as the first calculation reference date, the fund-specific investment target management unit may calculate the date closest to the first calculation reference date that exceeds the first period from the date of contract of at least one of the contracted customers on the first calculation reference date as the confirmed scheduled date on which new solicitations for the given fund become possible.

[0016] Users of such a hedge fund trading management system can recognize that the scheduled date on which new solicitations for a given fund become possible is the confirmed scheduled date on which a guaranteed vacancy will occur after the first period has elapsed since the closing date of any existing customer. Therefore, users of such a hedge fund trading management system can recognize that a guaranteed vacancy will occur on the confirmed scheduled date and prepare for new solicitations.

[0017] Furthermore, for example, in the hedge fund trading management system relating to the second perspective, the fund-specific investment target management unit can add unsuccessful transaction information for each of the unsuccessful customers, which is information indicating that it has been decided that a transaction will not be concluded after the solicitation date. The Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department may, with respect to the predetermined fund, calculate the date on which new solicitations become possible for the predetermined fund if the number of solicitable customers is 0 when the calculation reference date is set as the first calculation reference date. This date may be either the earliest future date on the first calculation reference date that exceeds the first period from the solicitation date of at least one of the unsold customers on the first calculation reference date for whom the non-sale information has been added, or the earliest future date on the first calculation reference date that exceeds the first period from the contract date of at least one of the sold customers on the first calculation reference date for which the contract date of that sold customer is the earliest future date.

[0018] Such a hedge fund trading management system can change the estimated scheduled date, which represents available slots due to unsold customers, into a confirmed scheduled date by accepting additional information on unsold orders, even if there are many unsold customers on the first calculation date for a given fund. Therefore, since such a hedge fund trading management system can change the estimated scheduled date into a confirmed scheduled date by adding information on unsold orders, users of the system can accurately recognize the date on which new solicitations become possible for the given fund.

[0019] Furthermore, for example, in a hedge fund trading management system relating to the second perspective, the fund-specific investment target management unit has a prospective customer storage unit that can store multiple prospective customers who are expected to be solicited to invest in the predetermined fund, in a ranked order. The Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department may, with respect to the predetermined fund, calculate a third calculation date, which is the nearest future calculation date from the first calculation date on which the number of solicitable customers becomes equal to or greater than the rank of the first prospective customer, as the date on which it becomes possible to solicit the first prospective customer to the predetermined fund.

[0020] Such a fund-specific investment target management department can register prospective customers and secure or reserve invitation slots for those prospective customers. Further, such a hedge fund trading management system can quickly recognize the scheduled date when invitations can be made for prospective customers.

[0021] For example, the hedge fund trading management system according to the present invention has a fund-specific order management department that manages the receipt of investment funds for the predetermined fund from the customer who has concluded an investment in the predetermined fund. The fund-specific order management department may have a received funds storage department that stores the investment funds received from the customer, the remittance foreign currency funds to be remitted to a foreign investment company that manages the predetermined fund among the investment funds, and the refund funds to be returned to the customer among the investment funds.

[0022] The fund-specific order management department having such a received funds storage department can surely and easily manage funds even when receiving investment funds from a customer in Japanese yen or the like, converting the investment funds, and remitting them in a foreign currency such as US dollars to an overseas hedge fund.

[0023] For example, the hedge fund trading management system according to the first and second aspects of the present invention has a hedge fund contract management department that manages the purchase results of the predetermined fund by the customer who has concluded an investment in the predetermined fund. The hedge fund contract management department may have a purchase status storage department that stores, in association with the remittance foreign currency funds, the purchase unit price and the contracted number of shares of the predetermined fund purchased with the remittance foreign currency funds sent to the foreign investment company.

[0024] With such a purchase status storage department, the hedge fund contract management department can surely and easily manage funds even for the purchase of a hedge fund where the purchase unit price is determined after remittance to a foreign investment company.

[0025] Furthermore, for example, in a hedge fund trading management system according to the first and second aspects of the present invention, the fund-specific order management unit manages the investment funds by distinguishing between customers who have made an investment agreement in a predetermined fund, and who make installment investments over a predetermined number of months (customers who make regular investments by aggregating the funds on a predetermined date each month), and who make regular investments, where the amount of foreign currency funds remitted corresponding to the investment funds received in a single transaction is less than the minimum remittance amount for the predetermined fund. The fund-specific order management unit may decide to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company if the total amount of the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds for a specified month received from one or more of the aforementioned fractional investment customers for the aforementioned specified fund is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount, and may decide to postpone the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company if it is less than the minimum remittance amount. When the fund-specific order management unit receives the investment funds of the regular investment customer, it may check whether there are any investment funds of the divided investment customer for which the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company is pending. If there are no investment funds of the divided investment customer that are pending, the unit may decide to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company for the investment funds of the regular investment customer. If there are investment funds of the divided investment customer that are pending, the unit may decide to proceed with the remittance procedure for the divided investment customer that is pending, together with the remittance procedure for the investment funds of the regular investment customer.

[0026] Such a hedge fund trading management system can smoothly accept investments from customers who wish to make small-scale purchases, where the amount of foreign currency funds to be remitted for a given fund is less than the minimum remittance amount for that fund. This is achieved by consolidating remittances from multiple customers making partial investments, thereby ensuring that the total remittance amount for a single transaction exceeds the minimum remittance amount. Furthermore, if the total amount of foreign currency funds remitted by customers making partial investments in a given month falls below the minimum remittance amount, the system can minimize delays in remittances from customers making partial investments by processing the remittances for these customers in line with the remittance procedures for regular customers.

[0027] Furthermore, for example, in a hedge fund trading management system according to the first and second aspects of the present invention, the fund-specific order management unit can distinguish and recognize the receipt of specific investment funds of a split investment customer relating to a predetermined fund as a specific receipt, and if such a specific receipt has occurred, it can confirm whether there are investment funds of other split investment customers whose remittance procedures to the foreign investment company relating to the predetermined fund are on hold, and the total amount of the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds of other split investment customers whose remittance procedures are on hold, If the investment funds of the pending installment investment customer do not exist, or if the investment funds of the pending installment investment customer exist but the sum of the total amount of the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds of the pending installment investment customer and the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds related to the specified receipt is less than the minimum remittance amount, then a decision will be made to suspend the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company. If the investment funds of the divided investment customers that are on hold exist, and the sum of the total amount of the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds of the divided investment customers that are on hold and the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds related to the specified receipt is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount, then a decision may be made to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company.

[0028] Such a fund-specific order management unit, for example, treats the receipt of the initial investment funds of a split-investment customer as a specific receipt, distinguishing it from the receipt of investment funds of other split-investment customers. This makes it possible to process the remittance of the initial investment funds of a split-investment customer to the foreign investment company as part of the current month's payment, before the split-investment customer's remittance timing in the following month.

[0029] Furthermore, for example, in the hedge fund trading management system according to the first and second aspects of the present invention, the fund-specific order management unit stores, for each of the divided investment customers, the remittance date on which the remittance of the foreign currency funds to the predetermined fund was made, The aforementioned fund-specific order management unit may calculate the total number of transfers as of the calculation base date for each of the aforementioned installment investment customers.

[0030] With a hedge fund trading management system that includes a fund-specific order management section, users of the system can appropriately and easily grasp the progress of each of their fractional investment clients' investments. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0031] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the schematic configuration of the hedge fund trading management system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a functional block diagram of the hedge fund trading management system shown in Figure 1. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a conceptual diagram showing the functions of the fund-specific investment target management department shown in Figure 2. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a conceptual diagram showing the information and calculation results (first example) stored in the fund-specific investment target management section of the hedge fund trading management system shown in Figure 2. [Figure 5] Figure 5 is an illustrative diagram showing an example of a graph displaying the calculation results of the fund-specific investment target management section in the hedge fund trading management system shown in Figure 2. [Figure 6]Figure 6 is a conceptual diagram showing the information and calculation results (second example) stored in the fund-specific investment target management section of the hedge fund trading management system shown in Figure 2. [Figure 7] Figure 7 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the remittance decision result in the fund-specific order management section shown in Figure 2. [Figure 8] Figure 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a decision regarding the remittance procedure for a customer making a split investment in the fund-specific order management department shown in Figure 2. [Figure 9] Figure 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a decision made regarding remittance procedures for regular investor customers in the fund-specific order management department shown in Figure 2. [Figure 10] Figure 10 is a flowchart showing another example of the decision-making process for remittance procedures for customers making split investments in the fund-specific order management department shown in Figure 2. [Figure 11] Figure 11 is a functional block diagram of the hedge fund trading management system according to the second embodiment. [Figure 12] Figure 12 is a conceptual diagram showing the functions of the fund-specific investment target management department shown in Figure 11. [Figure 13] Figure 13 is a conceptual diagram showing the information and calculation results (third example) stored in the fund-specific investment target management section of the hedge fund trading management system shown in Figure 11. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0032] Figure 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the schematic configuration of a hedge fund trading management system 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The hedge fund trading management system 10 is used, for example, by a financial institution such as a securities company to manage transactions related to hedge funds as financial products handled by that financial institution.

[0033] The hedge fund trading management system 10 shown in Figure 1 includes a server device connected to a network communication network 14 such as the Internet, and programs implemented on the server device. The hedge fund trading management system 10 can communicate via the network communication network 14 with sales staff terminals 15 used by financial institutions, a fund receipt information management terminal 16 that stores data such as account information of financial institutions into which investment funds 82 (see Figure 2) from customers are deposited, and a remittance information management terminal 17 that stores the history of overseas remittances for the purchase of hedge funds.

[0034] As shown in Figure 1, it is preferable that the hedge fund trading management system 10 can automatically acquire information on funds received from customers and information on overseas remittances from a fund receipt information management terminal 16, a remittance information management terminal 17, etc. However, the hedge fund trading management system 10 may also acquire information on funds received and information on overseas remittances by having staff of a domestic financial institution (users of the system 10) directly input the information into the hedge fund trading management system 10.

[0035] The server device constituting the hedge fund trading management system 10 has an input unit, a display unit, a communication control unit, a storage unit, and a calculation unit, and functions as a general-purpose computer. In this description of the hedge fund trading management system 10, the similarities with a general-purpose computer will be omitted.

[0036] Figure 2 is a functional block diagram of the hedge fund trading management system 10 shown in Figure 1. As shown in Figure 2, the hedge fund trading management system 10 includes a customer information storage unit 12, a fund-specific investment target management unit 20, a fund-specific order management unit 80, and a hedge fund execution management unit 96, among others.

[0037] The customer information storage unit 12 shown in Figure 1 stores customer lists and other information about customers who are targeted for investment solicitation in the hedge fund. The customer information storage unit 12 may include information such as each customer's address, age, occupation, contact information, and place of employment, as well as information to confirm that the financial assets they hold and that the funds are not at risk of being involved in money laundering or other similar activities.

[0038] The fund-specific investment target management unit 20 shown in Figure 2 manages customers stored in the customer information storage unit 12, categorized by the fund to which those customers are solicited. Here, hedge funds, in most cases (or basically), fall under the category of private placement to a small number of people as a form of offering for investment trusts. When soliciting for hedge funds under this type of offering, there are restrictions on the number of people who can be solicited within a specified period. For example, under the law as of July 2024, the first specified period 37 is 3 months, and the maximum number of people 36 who can be solicited simultaneously within the specified period (3 months) is 49.

[0039] In other words, the number of people solicited for a given hedge fund must not exceed the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations of 36 (49 people) in any first period 37 (3 months), as can be seen by checking the records, for example. Furthermore, in soliciting hedge funds to customers, the day on which the customer is solicited (solicitation date) and the day on which the customer concludes the purchase of the hedge fund after the solicitation (contract date) often do not coincide. Also, considering the actual workload involved in soliciting hedge funds, it is preferable to allocate time for explanations to customers not only on the solicitation date but also on the contract date. Financial institutions that solicit hedge funds are considered to have met the legal requirements if the number of customers solicited in the first period 37 (3 months) is always 36 (49 people) or less. In order to avoid the total number of solicitation dates and contract dates being concentrated in a short period, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 can implement stricter management conditions to ensure that the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations is 36 (49 people) or less. In other words, the fund-specific investment target management department 20 can manage new solicitations to designated hedge funds so that the number of customers solicited or contracted during the first period 37 (3 months) is always 36 (49) or less (i.e., never exceeding the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations of 36 (49)).

[0040] The Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20, as described later, can accurately calculate and provide useful information to financial institutions and their staff by storing information in a way that classifies customers who have been solicited to invest in a designated fund 21 into at least two types, including uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46, using the calculation reference date 30 as a variable. It is preferable that the first period 37 and the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations 36, which the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 uses in its calculations to limit the number of people solicited for small-scale private placements, can be set and changed in accordance with revisions to laws and regulations. However, in the following explanation, it will be assumed that the first period 37 is 3 months and the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations 36 is 49 people.

[0041] The uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46 stored in the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 are defined as follows: Uncontracted customers 40 are customers who were solicited to invest in a specified fund 21, and whose investment period from the solicitation date to the calculation base date 30 falls within the first period 37, and who have not yet concluded an investment on the calculation base date 30. Contracted customers 46 are customers who were solicited to invest in a specified fund 21, and whose investment in the specified fund 21 is concluded from the contract date 47 to the calculation base date 30 falls within the first period 37. The fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can determine the number of uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46 for a specified fund for any calculation base date 30.

[0042] Figure 4 is a conceptual diagram showing the information stored by the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 in the hedge fund trading management system 10 shown in Figure 2, and the results calculated from the stored information (first example). As shown in Figure 4, the hedge fund trading management system 10 stores the solicitation date 41 on which solicitation for the target fund 21 was made, and the settlement date 47 on which the investment in the target fund 21 was settled, for customers 01 to 49 who are targets for solicitation for a predetermined fund 21. In Figure 4, "K" indicates the solicitation date 41 for "customer 01" to "customer 49" shown in the first column, and "S" indicates the settlement date 47 for "customer 01" to "customer 49" shown in the first column.

[0043] For example, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 shown in Figure 4 remembers that it solicited "Customer 01" to invest in a designated fund 21 on June 1st, and that "Customer 01" finalized an investment in the designated fund 21 on June 2nd. The fund-specific investment target management unit 20 also remembers that it solicited "Customer 05" to invest in a designated fund 21 on June 3rd, and that as of August 30th, the finalization date 47 has not been entered, indicating that "Customer 05" has not yet finalized an investment. The solicitation date 41 (indicated as "K" in Figure 4) and finalization date 47 (indicated as "S" in Figure 4) for each of "Customer 01" to "Customer 49" are entered by staff of financial institutions using the hedge fund trading management system 10 in accordance with actual sales activities and are stored by the fund-specific investment target management unit 20.

[0044] The fund-specific investment target management unit 20 of the hedge fund trading management system 10 stores the solicitation date 41 (indicated as "K" in Figure 4) and the contract date (indicated as "S" in Figure 4) for each of the "customers 01" to "customers 49," as shown in Figure 4. This allows the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 to grasp the status of uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46 for a given fund 21, using an arbitrary calculation base date as a variable.

[0045] For example, in the example shown in Figure 4, if the calculation base date 30 is set to "June 3rd", there are 3 uncontracted customers 40 in the specified fund 21 ("Customer 03" to "Customer 05") and 2 contracted customers 46 ("Customer 01" and "Customer 02"). Also, if the calculation base date 30 is set to "August 30th", there are 19 uncontracted customers 40 in the specified fund 21 ("Customer 03", "Customer 05", "Customer 47" to "Customer 49", etc.) and 30 contracted customers 46 ("Customer 01", "Customer 02", "Customer 04", etc.).

[0046] In this way, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can calculate the number of uncontracted customers 40 and the number of contracted customers 46 by storing the solicitation date 41 and the contract closing date 47 for customers who have been solicited to a predetermined fund 21, using an arbitrary calculation reference date as a variable. In this case, the calculation reference date 30 used by the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 during the calculation may be the current day at the time of calculation, a day in the past from the time of calculation, or a day in the future from the time of calculation. For example, in Figure 4, if the current date at the time of calculation is "August 30th," the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 can calculate the number of uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46 for a given fund 21 not only on "August 30th," but also for dates prior to "August 30th" (for example, "June 2nd" or "June 3rd") and dates in the future of "August 30th" (for example, "September 1st" or "September 4th"). In Figure 4, the rows in the leftmost column labeled "Uncontracted" show the calculation results for the number of uncontracted customers 40, and the rows in the leftmost column labeled "Contracted" show the calculation results for the number of contracted customers 46.

[0047] Furthermore, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 calculates the number of customers that can be solicited for the specified fund 21 on the calculation reference date 30 by subtracting the sum of the number of uncontracted customers 40 and the number of contracted customers 46 for the specified fund 21 from the maximum number of simultaneous solicited customers 36 (49) for the specified fund 21. In Figure 4, the row in the leftmost column labeled "Used Slots" shows the sum of the number of uncontracted customers 40 and the number of contracted customers 46 for the specified fund 21, and the row in the leftmost column labeled "Available Slots" shows the calculation result of the number of customers that can be solicited for the specified fund 21 on the calculation reference date 30, which is 72 (see Figure 3).

[0048] For example, in the example shown in Figure 4, if the calculation base date 30 is set to "June 3rd", the sum of the number of uncontracted customers 40 and the number of contracted customers 46 for the specified fund 21 is "5". Also, the number of customers that can be solicited on the calculation base date 30, 72, is "44", which is obtained by subtracting the sum of the number of uncontracted customers 40 and the number of contracted customers 46, "5", from the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations of 36, "49". Also, if the calculation base date 30 is set to "August 30th", the sum of the number of uncontracted customers 40 and the number of contracted customers 46 for the specified fund 21 is "49". Also, the number of customers that can be solicited on the calculation base date 30, 72, is obtained by subtracting the sum of the number of uncontracted customers 40 and the number of contracted customers 46, "49", from the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations of 36, "49", "0".

[0049] In addition, as shown in Figure 4, the first column from the left is the row labeled "empty slot," the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Unit 20 can calculate the number of customers 72 that can be solicited on any calculation reference date 30. That is, the calculation reference date 30 used by the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Unit 20 during calculation may be the current day at the time of calculation, a past day, or a future day. For example, in Figure 4, if the current day at the time of calculation is "August 30th," the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Unit 20 can calculate the number of customers 72 that can be solicited for a given fund 21 not only on "August 30th" (for example, "June 2nd" or "June 3rd"), but also on days prior to "August 30th" (for example, "September 1st" or "September 4th") and on days in the future to "August 30th" (for example, "September 1st" or "September 4th").

[0050] Furthermore, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can calculate not only the number of customers that can be solicited 72, but also the scheduled date 71 (see Figure 3) on which new solicitations will become possible for a given fund. Specifically, if the number of customers that can be solicited 72 for a given fund 21 is 0 when the calculation base date 30 is set as the first calculation base date 31, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 calculates the second calculation base date 32, which is the closest future calculation base date 30 from the first calculation base date 31 on which the number of customers that can be solicited 72 is 1 or more, as the scheduled date 71 on which new solicitations will become possible for the given fund 21.

[0051] For example, in the example shown in Figure 4, assuming that the current date at the time of calculation is "August 30th," and that this current date is designated as the first calculation reference date 31, the number of solicitable customers 72 is "0." Thus, on the first calculation reference date 31, where the number of solicitable customers 72 is "0," it means that it is currently not possible to solicit new customers for the given fund 21.

[0052] In such a case, for example, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 calculates the number of solicitable customers 72 at each calculation base date 30 by changing the calculation base date 30 one day into the future until the number of solicitable customers 72 is 1 or more. In this way, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 can find the second calculation base date 32, which is the closest future calculation base date 30 from the first calculation base date 31 where the number of solicitable customers 72 is 1 or more, and calculates that second calculation base date as the planned date on which new solicitations will become possible for the given fund 21.

[0053] In other words, if the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on the first calculation base date 31, "August 30th," is "0," the fund-specific investment target management department 20 changes the calculation base date 30 by one day to "August 31st" as the new calculation base date 30, and calculates the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on "August 31st." In the example shown in Figure 4, the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on "August 31st" remains "0." Then, the fund-specific investment target management department 20 changes the calculation base date 30 by another day to "September 1st" as the new calculation base date 30, and calculates the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on "September 1st." In the example shown in Figure 4, the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on "September 1st" is "1." Therefore, through this calculation, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Unit 20 can determine that the second calculation base date 32, which is the closest future calculation base date from the first calculation base date 31 where the number of solicitable customers 72 is 1 or more, is "September 1st". Furthermore, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Unit 20 can display "September 1st", the second calculation base date 32, as the planned date 71 on which new solicitations become possible for a given fund 21, on a display unit or the like.

[0054] From a different perspective, let's explain the scheduled date 71 on which new solicitations become possible for the specified fund 21. In Figure 4, the number shown in the row where the first left column is "Available Slots" is the number of customers 72 that can be solicited on that day. In the example shown in Figure 4, on "August 30th," the number of customers 72 that can be solicited is "0," and it is not possible to solicit new customers for the specified fund 21 on "August 30th." In such a case, the row where the first left column is "Available Slots" is slid to the right (into the future) from "August 30th" to find the day on which the number shown in the "Available Slots" row becomes "1 or more" for the first time. Then, the fund-specific investment target management department 20 can recognize that the second calculation base date 32, which is the closest future calculation base date 30 from the first calculation base date 31 on which the number of customers 72 that can be solicited becomes "1 or more," is "September 1st." In this way, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can calculate the scheduled date 71 on which new solicitations become possible for a given fund 21 from the recorded data of the solicitation date and contract date for each customer. Alternatively, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 may automatically calculate and store the number of "available slots" for a given fund 21 as shown in Figure 4, and use the stored calculation results to calculate the scheduled date 71 on which new solicitations become possible for a given fund 21.

[0055] Figure 3 is a conceptual diagram summarizing the information stored by the fund-specific investment target management unit 20, the parameters used when calculating from the stored information, and the calculated values ​​calculated by the fund-specific investment target management unit 20. As shown in Figure 3, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can calculate the number of customers that can be solicited 72 and the scheduled date 71 on which new solicitations will become possible for a given fund 21, from stored information such as unsold customers 40 and sold customers 46.

[0056] Furthermore, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 shown in Figure 3 can store uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46, and can calculate the expected date 71 on which new solicitations will be possible for a given fund 21, distinguishing between an estimated expected date 73 and a confirmed expected date 74. That is, for a given fund 21, if the number of solicitable customers on the calculation base date 30 is set as the first calculation base date 31 is 0, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can calculate the estimated expected date 73 on which new solicitations will be possible for the given fund 21, which is the closest future day from the first calculation base date 31 that is more than 37 periods from the solicitation date 41 of at least one of the uncontracted customers 40 on the first calculation base date 31.

[0057] For example, in the example shown in Figure 4, the number of solicitable customers 72 when "August 30th" is set as the first calculation reference date 31 is "0" as described above. Also, the uncontracted customers 40 on the first calculation reference date 31 are "Customer 03", "Customer 05", "Customer 47" to "Customer 49", etc., and the number of uncontracted customers 40 is "19". As can be seen from Figure 4, an uncontracted customer 40 ceases to be an uncontracted customer 40 after three months, which is the first period 37, has passed since the solicitation date 41 of that uncontracted customer 40 without a contract being made, and an empty slot becomes available in the solicitation slots of the designated fund 21.

[0058] For example, "Customer 03," who is an uncontracted customer 40 on "August 30," was solicited on "June 1." Therefore, if "Customer 03" does not contract by "September 1," "Customer 03" will no longer be considered an uncontracted customer 40, and a slot will become available in the solicitation quota for the designated fund 21 (indicated by "☆" in Figure 4). Similarly, regarding "Customer 05," who is an uncontracted customer 40 on "August 30," if "Customer 05" does not contract by "September 3," a slot will become available in the solicitation quota for the designated fund 21.

[0059] The Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 calculates the estimated target date 73 as the date on which at least one of the uncontracted customers 40 ("Customer 03", "Customer 05", "Customer 47" to "Customer 49") on the first calculation base date 31 will cease to be an uncontracted customer beyond the first period 37 from their solicitation date 41, if the number of solicitable customers 72 on the first calculation base date 31 is "0". In the example shown in Figure 4, if "August 30" is the first calculation base date 31, then "Customer 03", who has the oldest solicitation date 41 among the uncontracted customers 40 on "August 30", will have "September 1", which is beyond the first period 37 from their solicitation date 41, become the estimated target date 73 calculated by the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20.

[0060] As described above, the estimated target date 73 is the date on which any uncontracted customer 40 exceeds the first period 37 from their solicitation date 41, resulting in an available slot for the solicitation of the specified fund 21. However, uncontracted customers 40 may contract between the first calculation base date 31 and the estimated target date 73. For example, "Customer 03" shown in Figure 4 still has the possibility of contracting for the specified fund 21 on "August 31," and if contracted, no slot will be available on the calculated estimated target date 73, "September 1." In other words, the estimated target date 73 estimates the date on which new solicitations become possible for the specified fund 21, but it is not guaranteed that an available slot will necessarily be created on that day.

[0061] On the other hand, with respect to a given fund 21, if the number of solicitable customers is 0 when the calculation base date 30 is set as the first calculation base date 31, the fund management department 20 can calculate the date closest to the first calculation base date 31 that is more than the first period 37 from the contract date 47 of the contracted customer 46 on the first calculation base date 31 as the confirmed scheduled date when new solicitations become possible for the given fund 21.

[0062] For example, in the example shown in Figure 4, the number of solicitable customers 72 when "August 30th" is set as the first calculation reference date 31 is "0" as described above. Also, the number of completed customers 46 on the first calculation reference date 31 is "Customer 01", "Customer 02", "Customer 04", etc., and the number of completed customers 46 is "30". As can be seen from Figure 4, a completed customer 46 ceases to be a completed customer 46 after three months, which is the first period 37, has elapsed since the completion date 47 of that completed customer 46, and an empty slot becomes available in the solicitation slots of the designated fund 21.

[0063] For example, "Customer 01," who is Customer 46 as of "August 30," has a contract date 47 of "June 2." Therefore, three months after the contract date 47, on "September 2," Customer 01 ceases to be Customer 46, and an available slot becomes available in the solicitation quota for the designated fund 21 (indicated by "★" in Figure 4). Similarly, for "Customer 02," who is Customer 46 as of "August 30," an available slot becomes available in the solicitation quota for the designated fund 21 on "September 3," three months after its contract date 47, "June 3."

[0064] The Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 calculates the expected final date 74 as the date on which at least one of the contracted customers 46 ("Customer 01", "Customer 02", "Customer 03", etc.) on the first calculation base date 31 ceases to be a contracted customer 46 beyond the first period 37 from their contract date 47, if the number of solicitable customers 72 on the first calculation base date 31 is "0". In the example shown in Figure 4, if "August 30" is the first calculation base date 31, then "Customer 01", which has the oldest contract date 47 among the contracted customers 46 on "August 30", will have its expected final date 74 calculated by the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 on "September 2", which is beyond the first period 37 from its contract date 47.

[0065] As described above, the confirmed date 74 is the date on which any of the contracted customers 46 will have exceeded the first period 37 from their contract date 47, thereby creating an available slot in the solicitation quota for the specified fund 21. Therefore, unlike the estimated date 73, the confirmed date 74 means the date on which it is confirmed that new solicitations for the specified fund 21 will become possible (at the latest, the date on which an available slot will be created).

[0066] As described above, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 shown in Figures 2 and 3 can calculate the expected date 71 on which new solicitations will be possible for a given fund 21, distinguishing between an estimated date 73 and a confirmed date 74. Therefore, sales staff who utilize this information can create precise future solicitation plans.

[0067] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 2, in addition to storing the aforementioned uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 has a prospective customer storage unit 50 that stores prospective customers 52 who are expected to be solicited to invest in a predetermined fund 21. The prospective customer storage unit 50 can store multiple prospective customers 52 with a ranking system. The ranking assigned to the prospective customers 52 is, for example, a priority order for assigning solicitation slots. When a higher-ranking prospective customer 52 is solicited and changes to an uncontracted customer 40 or a contracted customer 46, the ranking of the lower-ranking prospective customer 52 moves up.

[0068] In the example shown in Figure 4, "Customer 50" to "Customer 54" are prospective customers 52 stored in the prospective customer storage unit 50 of the fund-specific investment target management unit 20, and five prospective customers are stored in the prospective customer storage unit 50. The number of prospective customers 52 stored in the prospective customer storage unit 50 is not particularly limited, but if multiple prospective customers 52 are stored, a priority order is assigned to each prospective customer 52 to allocate a solicitation slot. In the example shown in Figure 4, the order of priority is "Customer 50", "Customer 51", "Customer 52", "Customer 53", and "Customer 54".

[0069] When a prospective customer 52 is registered for a designated fund 21, if there are available slots in the designated fund that are ranked higher than or equal to the prospective customer 52's rank, it is possible to immediately solicit the prospective customer 52 for the designated fund 21. However, as shown in the example in Figure 4, if the number of customers who can be solicited for the designated fund 21 is less than the prospective customer 52's rank, it is not possible to solicit the prospective customer 52 for the designated fund 21 at that time. In such cases, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can calculate the expected date on which it will be possible to solicit the prospective customer 52 for the designated fund 21.

[0070] In other words, with respect to a given fund 21, if the number of solicitable customers 72 on the calculation base date 30 is set as the first calculation base date 31 is less than the ranking of the first prospective customer (for example, "customer 50"), which is one of the prospective customers 52, the fund management department 20 calculates the third calculation base date 33, which is the closest future calculation base date 30 from the first calculation base date 31 where the number of solicitable customers is equal to or greater than the ranking of the first prospective customer, as the prospective date 75 on which solicitation of the given fund 21 to the first prospective customer becomes possible.

[0071] In the example shown in Figure 4, consider the case where the first calculation reference date 31 is "August 30th" and the first prospective customer is "Customer 50". Customer 50's rank among multiple prospective customers 52 is 1st. For a given fund 21, if the calculation reference date is set to the first calculation reference date 31, "August 30th", the number of customers that can be solicited (the number of "available slots") is less than the rank of the first prospective customer, "Customer 50", which is one of the prospective customers, which is "1". In this case, the fund-specific investment target management department 20 calculates the closest future calculation reference date from the first calculation reference date 31, "August 30th", where the number of customers that can be solicited for the given fund 21 is equal to or greater than the rank of the first prospective customer, "Customer 50", which is "1".

[0072] In the example shown in Figure 4, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 calculates the number of solicitable customers in a given fund 21 by shifting the calculation reference date 33 one day into the future from the first calculation reference date 31, "August 30th," and compares the calculated value with the ranking of the first prospective customer, "Customer 50."

[0073] In the example shown in Figure 4, the number of customers who can be solicited into the specified fund 21 becomes "1" or higher, which is the rank of the first prospective customer "Customer 50," only when the third calculation reference date 33 is set to "September 1st." Therefore, the fund-specific investment target management department 20 calculates "September 1st" as the third calculation reference date 33 for the first prospective customer "Customer 50," which is the scheduled date 75 on which solicitation into the specified fund 21 becomes possible for the first prospective customer "Customer 50." The fund-specific investment target management department 20 can calculate the third calculation reference date 33 for the other prospective customers 52, namely "Customers 51" to "Customers 54," in the same manner as for "Customer 50," which is the scheduled date 75 on which solicitation into the specified fund 21 becomes possible for these prospective customers 52.

[0074] Furthermore, information regarding prospective customers 52 is entered by staff of a financial institution using the hedge fund trading management system 10, similar to information regarding uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46, and is stored in the prospective customer storage unit 50 of the fund-specific investment target management unit 20. In the calculation example described above, when the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 calculates the scheduled date 75 on which prospective customers 52 can be solicited to a predetermined fund 21, it compares the ranking of the first prospective customer with the number of customers 72 who can be solicited to the predetermined fund 21 on the calculation date. However, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 may also, when calculating the scheduled date 75 on which prospective customers 52 can be solicited to a predetermined fund 21, compare the ranking of the first prospective customer with the number obtained by subtracting the number of available slots (the row labeled "Expected Increase in Available Slots" in Figure 3) that become available when uncontracted customers 40 are removed from the offering slots.

[0075] In other words, as shown in Figure 3, when the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 calculates the scheduled date 75 on which it will be possible to solicit a predetermined fund 21 to a predetermined prospective customer 52, it is possible to calculate a scheduled date that takes into account the increase in available slots resulting from unsold customers 40 and sold customers 46 being removed from the offering slots, an estimated scheduled date that takes into account only the increase in available slots resulting from unsold customers 40 being removed from the offering slots, and a confirmed scheduled date that takes into account only the increase in available slots resulting from sold customers 46 being removed from the offering slots.

[0076] The fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can employ various display and communication formats when communicating calculated values ​​such as the number of solicitable customers 72 shown in Figure 3, the expected date 71 on which solicitation becomes possible, the estimated expected date 73 on which solicitation becomes possible, the confirmed expected date 74 on which solicitation becomes possible, and the expected date 75 on which solicitation becomes possible for prospective customers to users of the hedge fund trading management system 10. The fund-specific investment target management unit 20 may communicate the calculated values ​​by displaying them in the display unit in the format of a table or list as shown in Figure 4, for example, but it can also simply display the calculated numbers or dates, or communicate the calculated numbers or dates by voice.

[0077] Figure 5 is a graph showing the breakdown of the number of uncontracted customers 40, the number of contracted customers 46, and the number of solicitable customers 72 (available slots) for each calculation reference date 30 (horizontal axis) for a given fund 21, based on the values ​​calculated by the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 shown in Figures 3 and 4. As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 may be able to display the calculation results in multiple formats, including tables and graphs, and the display format of the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 may be selectable by the user of the hedge fund trading management system 10.

[0078] As explained using Figures 3 and 4, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 classifies and stores customers for a given fund 21 into at least two types: uncontracted customers 40 and contracted customers 46. Therefore, depending on the given fund 21 for which the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 manages the customer solicitation status, a situation may occur where the proportion of uncontracted customers 40 is large and the proportion of contracted customers 46 is small. In the calculation example shown in Figure 4, the confirmed date is calculated based on the date on which contracted customers 46 are removed from the solicitation quota. Therefore, if a fund occurs where the proportion of uncontracted customers 40 is large and the proportion of contracted customers 46 is small, the confirmed date 74 may be calculated to be considerably further in the future than the estimated date 73. However, when sales staff plan their sales schedules using the hedge fund trading management system 10, it is easier to plan when the confirmed date 74, on which solicitation is definitely possible, is in the near future, rather than when only the uncertain estimated date 73 is in the near future.

[0079] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 may add non-contract information 42 to each of the uncontracted customers 40 after the solicitation date 41 of that uncontracted customer 40, which is information indicating that it has been decided that the uncontracted customer 40 will not be able to conclude a contract in the future. For uncontracted customers 40 to whom non-contract information 42 has been added, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can calculate the confirmed scheduled date 74, assuming that the number of available solicitations for a given fund 21 will definitely increase after the first period 37 has passed from the solicitation date 41 of the uncontracted customer 40.

[0080] In other words, with respect to a predetermined fund 21, if the number of solicitable customers 72 when the calculation base date 30 is set as the first calculation base date 31 is 0, the fund management unit 20 can calculate the earlier of the following dates as the confirmed scheduled date 74 when new solicitations become possible for the predetermined fund 41: either the nearest future day from the first calculation base date 31 where at least one of the uncontracted customers 40 on the first calculation base date 31 has been solicited by more than the first period 37 from the solicitation date 41 of the uncontracted customer 40, or the nearest future day from the first calculation base date 31 where at least one of the contracted customers 46 on the first calculation base date 31 has been solicited by more than the first period 37 from the contract date 47 of the contracted customer 46.

[0081] Figure 6 is a table showing an example of calculations by the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 according to another embodiment, including the number of solicitable customers 72 and the confirmed scheduled date 74 when solicitation becomes possible for a given fund 21. The example shown in Figure 6 differs from the example shown in Figure 4 in that the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 can add unsuccessful transaction information 42 to unsuccessful customers 40, but is otherwise the same.

[0082] More specifically, in the example shown in Figure 6, the fund-specific investment target management department 20 added non-contract information 42 for "Customer 03," one of the uncontracted customers 40 on "August 30," on "June 3," which is after the solicitation date 41, "June 1." The non-contract information 42, like information such as the solicitation date 41 and the contract date 47, is entered by staff of financial institutions using the hedge fund trading management system 10 in accordance with actual sales activities.

[0083] In the example shown in Figure 6, similar to the example shown in Figure 4, the number of solicitable customers 72 when "August 30th" is set as the first calculation base date 31 is "0". Also, the uncontracted customers 40 on the first calculation base date 31 are "Customer 03", "Customer 05", "Customer 47" to "Customer 49", etc., and the contracted customers 46 are "Customer 01", "Customer 02", "Customer 04", etc. For "Customer 03" among the uncontracted customers 40, non-contract information 42 (shown as "F" in Figure 6) has been added.

[0084] When calculating the confirmed due date 74, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 first determines the nearest future day from the first calculation base date 31 ("Customer 03") in which at least one of the uncontracted customers 40 on the first calculation base date 31 ("August 30") for whom uncontracted information 42 has been added ("Customer 03") exceeds the first period 37 from the solicitation date 41 of the said uncontracted customer 40. In the example shown in Figure 6, "Customer 03," an uncontracted customer 40 for whom uncontracted information 42 has been added on "September 1" (indicated as "◆" in Figure 6), exceeds the first period 37 from its solicitation date 41, "June 1," so the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 calculates that "September 1" is that day.

[0085] Next, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20, similar to how it determined the confirmed scheduled date 74 in the example shown in Figure 4, determines the nearest future date from the first calculation base date 31 that exceeds the first period 37 from the contract date 47 of at least one of the contracted customers 46 on the first calculation base date 31, which is "August 30th". As explained using Figure 4, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 calculates that this date to be "September 2nd".

[0086] Finally, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 compares "September 1st," the date on which at least one of the uncontracted customers 40 for which uncontracted information 42 has been added is removed from the solicitation quota, with "September 2nd," the date on which at least one of the contracted customers 46 is removed from the solicitation quota, and calculates the earlier of the two dates as the confirmed scheduled date 74 on which new solicitations become possible for the specified fund 21. In the example shown in Figure 6, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 20 calculates "September 1st" as the confirmed scheduled date 74 on which new solicitations become possible for the specified fund 21.

[0087] The fund-specific investment target management unit 20, to which unsold information 42 as shown in Figure 6 is added, can calculate the confirmed date 74 in the near future, even when managing finds where the proportion of unsold customers 40 is large and the proportion of sold customers 46 is small, compared to when unsold information 42 is not used. Therefore, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 to which unsold information 42 is added contributes to the creation of effective sales plans by sales staff using the head fund trading management system 10.

[0088] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 2, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 stores the aforementioned uncontracted customers 40, contracted customers 46, and prospective customers 52 as customers related to a given fund 21, as well as other customers 49. The other customers 49 include customers who have not yet contracted and have been removed from the solicitation quota after the first period 37 has elapsed from the solicitation date 41, and customers who have contracted and have been removed from the solicitation quota after the first period 37 has elapsed from the contracting date 47, as well as information about these customers.

[0089] As shown in Figure 2, the hedge fund trading management system 10 has a fund-specific order management unit 80. The fund-specific order management unit 80 manages the receipt of investment funds 82, etc., into a predetermined fund 21 from customers who have completed an investment in a predetermined fund 21, as described in the fund-specific investment target management unit 20. In other words, the fund-specific order management unit 80 has a received funds storage unit 81, and the received funds storage unit 81 stores the flow of investment funds 82 received from customers, thereby enabling the fund-specific order management unit 80 to manage the funds.

[0090] In other words, the received funds storage unit 81 stores the investment funds 82 received from the customer, the remittance foreign currency funds 83 to be sent from the investment funds 82 to the foreign investment company that manages the predetermined fund 21, and the return funds 84 to be returned from the investment funds 82 to the customer. Here, the currency of the investment funds 82 received from the customer by the financial institution using the hedge fund trading management system 10 may differ from the currency handled by the foreign investment company that manages the hedge fund. For example, the financial institution may receive the investment funds 82 from the customer in the currency "yen," but the hedge fund managed by the foreign investment company may be operated in the currency "US dollars" (or other foreign currencies, etc.).

[0091] In this case, the financial institution using the hedge fund trading management system 10 converts the investment funds 82 (such as yen) received from the customer into a currency handled by the hedge fund (such as US dollars) to create remittance foreign currency funds 83, and then remits them to the foreign investment company. At this time, the remittance foreign currency funds 83 are assumed to be an amount without fractional amounts, so a difference arises between the amount used for the exchange of the remittance foreign currency funds 83 and the amount of investment funds 82 received from the customer, and this difference is returned to the customer as return funds 84. It is preferable that when the financial institution informs the customer of the amount of investment funds 82 to be received, it sets an amount that will result in a small amount of return funds 84, taking into account fluctuations in the exchange rate.

[0092] In this way, the fund-specific order management unit 80 distinguishes and stores investment funds 82 received from customers and foreign currency funds 83 to be transferred from the investment funds 82 to a foreign investment company that manages a designated fund 21. This allows for proper management of funds even when the currency of the investment funds 82 received from customers differs from the currency handled by the designated fund 21 in which the investment is made.

[0093] As shown in Figure 2, the hedge fund trading management system 10 has a hedge fund transaction management unit 96 that manages the purchase results of a predetermined fund 21 by a customer who has completed an investment in that fund 21. The hedge fund transaction management unit 96 has a purchase status storage unit 97, which stores the purchase price 98 of the predetermined fund 21 purchased with the remitted foreign currency funds 83 that were sent to the foreign investment company handled by the hedge fund, in association with the remitted foreign currency funds 83. By storing the remitted foreign currency funds 83 and the purchase price 98 at the time the predetermined fund 21 was purchased with those remitted foreign currency funds 83 in association with each other, the hedge fund trading management system 10 can calculate the number of shares (holdings) of the predetermined fund 21 that the customer has purchased.

[0094] Furthermore, when purchasing a hedge fund, there is a discrepancy between the timing of receiving investment funds 82 from the customer, the timing of exchanging the investment funds 82 and sending the foreign currency funds 83 to the foreign investment company, and the timing of the purchase of the designated fund 21 using the remitted foreign currency funds 83 and the determination of the purchase price 98. In addition, since the buying and selling price of hedge funds is constantly fluctuating, customers who invest in the designated fund 21 usually cannot know the exact purchase price 98 when they hand over the investment funds 82 to the domestic financial institution.

[0095] Therefore, the hedge fund transaction management unit 96 can appropriately manage the number of shares (holdings) of a predetermined fund 21 purchased by a customer by associating and storing the remitted foreign currency funds 83 with the purchase price 98 determined after the time of remittance.

[0096] As shown in Figure 2, the fund-specific order management unit 80 can manage customers who have entered into an investment agreement for a designated fund 21 by distinguishing between installment investment customers 85 and regular investment customers 87. A regular investment customer 87 is a customer whose remittance of foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 received from the customer in one transaction is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company that manages the designated fund 21. The minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company is, for example, 100,000 US dollars, and a regular investment customer 87 enters into a contract to purchase a hedge fund in one transaction using remittance of 100,000 US dollars or more in foreign currency funds 83.

[0097] In contrast, a split investment customer 85 is a customer whose remitted foreign currency funds 83, corresponding to the investment funds 82 received at one time, are less than the minimum remittance amount for a predetermined fund 21, and who invests for a predetermined number of consecutive months. For example, a split investment customer 85 enters into a contract to purchase a hedge fund for 10 months (10 installments) once a month using remitted foreign currency funds of 10,000 US dollars, which are less than the minimum remittance amount to a foreign investment company.

[0098] Figure 8 is a flowchart showing the decision-making process when the fund-specific order management unit 80 performs the remittance procedure for a split investment customer 85. As shown in step S001 of Figure 8, when the remittance period for a predetermined month for a split investment customer 85 arrives, the fund-specific order management unit 80 makes the decision shown in Figure 8. In step S002, the fund-specific order management unit 80 determines whether the total amount of remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 for a predetermined month received from one or more split investment customers 85 for a predetermined fund 21 is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company.

[0099] In step S002, if the total amount of remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to investment funds 82 for a specified month collected from multiple installment investment customers 85 is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company, the process proceeds to step S003, and the fund-specific order management unit 80 decides to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company. On the other hand, in step S002, if the total amount of remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to investment funds 82 for a specified month collected from multiple installment investment customers 85 is less than the minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company, the process proceeds to step S004, and the fund-specific order management unit 80 decides to postpone the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company. Note that the exchange from investment funds 82 to remittance foreign currency funds 83 takes place immediately before the remittance procedure; therefore, if the remittance procedure is postponed, the exchange from investment funds 82 to remittance foreign currency funds 83 is also postponed.

[0100] Figure 9 is a flowchart showing the decision-making process when the fund-specific order management unit 80 performs a remittance procedure for a regular investment customer 87 in a predetermined fund 21 that includes a split investment customer 85 as a customer. As shown in step S101 of Figure 9, when the fund-specific order management unit 80 receives input indicating that it has received the investment funds 82 of a regular investment customer 87, it makes the decision shown in Figure 9. In step S102, the fund-specific order management unit 80 checks whether there are investment funds 82 of a split investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to a foreign investment company for the predetermined fund 21 is on hold.

[0101] In step S102, if there are no investment funds 82 for a divided investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to a foreign investment company is pending, the process proceeds to step S103, where the fund-specific order management unit 80 decides to exchange the investment funds 82 of a regular investment customer 87 for remittance foreign currency funds 83 and proceed with the remittance process to the foreign investment company. On the other hand, if there are investment funds 82 for a divided investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to a foreign investment company is pending in step S102, the process proceeds to step S104, where the decision is made to carry out the remittance procedure for the pending divided investment customer 85 together with the remittance procedure for the investment funds 82 of a regular investment customer 87.

[0102] Figure 7 is a conceptual diagram showing the receipt records of investment funds 82 and remittance records of remittance foreign currency funds 83 for each customer, as stored by the fund-specific order management unit 80. As shown in Figure 7, the fund-specific order management unit 80 stores the month (remittance date in Figure 7) in which the remittance of remittance foreign currency funds 83 to a predetermined fund 21 was carried out for each segment customer ("Customer 01" to "Customer 13" in Figure 7). The fund-specific order management unit 80 also stores the month (remittance date in Figure 7) in which the remittance of remittance foreign currency funds 83 to a predetermined fund 21 was carried out for regular investment customers 87 ("Customer 71" to "Customer 73" in Figure 7) for a predetermined fund 21.

[0103] In the example shown in Figure 7, the fund-specific order management unit 80 confirms the receipt of investment funds 82 for each month from installment investment customers 85 ("Customer 01" to "Customer 13") on the 1st of each month. It is also assumed that installment investment customers 85 have a contract to purchase an amount equal to one-tenth of the minimum transfer amount for a specified fund 21 each month (for example, 10,000 US dollars) for 10 months (10 installments).

[0104] According to the fund-specific order management department 80's records for June in the example shown in Figure 7, at the time of remittance (June 1), investment funds 82 were received from 10 installment investment customers 85 ("Customer 01" to "Customer 10"). Therefore, the total of the remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to these investment funds 82 is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company (100,000 US dollars) (Step S002 in Figure 8). Accordingly, the fund-specific order management department 80 decided to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company for these installment investment customers 85 (Step S003 in Figure 8), and the remittance procedure was carried out the following day (June 2).

[0105] Furthermore, according to the fund-specific order management department 80's records for June in the example shown in Figure 7, investment funds 82 were received from regular investment customer 87 ("customer 71") on "June 3rd". At this time, the fund-specific order management department 80 confirmed that there were no investment funds 82 from split investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to a foreign investment company was pending (step S102 in Figure 9), and then proceeded with the remittance procedure for regular investment customer 87 (step S103 in Figure 9).

[0106] On the other hand, according to the fund-specific order management department 80's records for July in the example shown in Figure 7, at the time of remittance (July 1), investment funds 82 were received from only nine segmented investment customers 85 ("Customer 01" to "Customer 09"), and the total of the remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to these investment funds 82 was less than the minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company (90,000 US dollars) (Step S002 in Figure 8). Therefore, the fund-specific order management department 80 decided to postpone the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company for these segmented investment customers 85 (Step S004 in Figure 8), and the remittance procedure scheduled for the following day (July 2) was postponed.

[0107] In the example shown in Figure 7, for July, the investment funds 82 for the month from "Customer 10" among the installment investment customers 85 for the specified fund 21 have not yet been received. As shown in Figure 7, if the investment funds 82 are not received by the remittance deadline from some of the installment investment customers 85 who are making installment purchases of the specified fund 21, or if there are few installment investment customers 85 who are making installment purchases of the specified fund 21, the total amount of remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 received from the installment investment customers 85 in the specified month may fall below the minimum remittance amount.

[0108] Furthermore, according to the fund-specific order management department 80's records for July in the example shown in Figure 7, investment funds 82 were received from regular investment customer 87 ("customer 72") on "July 4th". At this time, the fund-specific order management department 80 confirmed that there were investment funds 82 from a split investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to a foreign investment company was on hold (step S102 in Figure 9), and decided to carry out the remittance procedure for the held split investment customer 85 together with the remittance procedure for regular investment customer 87 (step S104 in Figure 9). As a result, the remittance procedure for the July split investment customer 85, which had been on hold, was carried out on "July 4th" together with the remittance procedure for regular investment customer 87 ("customer 72").

[0109] According to a hedge fund trading management system having a fund-specific order management unit 80 that performs such processing, for customers who wish to make small-lot purchases where the amount of remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 received in one transaction is less than the minimum remittance amount for a given fund 21, the system can combine remittances from multiple installment investment customers 85 to make the total remittance amount equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount, thereby enabling smooth order acceptance. Furthermore, if the total amount of remitted foreign currency funds 83 from installment investment customers 85 in a given month is less than the minimum remittance amount, the system can suppress delays in remittances from installment investment customers 85 by carrying out the remittance procedures for the installment investment customers 85 that have been put on hold in line with the remittance procedures for regular investment customers 87.

[0110] The fund-specific order management unit 80, which includes the installment investment customer 85 as a customer, can handle the receipt of investment funds 82 from the installment investment customer 85 not only in the pattern of receiving the funds before the scheduled remittance date in a predetermined month, as shown in Figure 8, but can also process the receipt of investment funds 82 from the installment investment customer 85 at a time other than before the scheduled remittance date in a predetermined month in a different manner than shown in Figure 8. In other words, the fund-specific order management unit 80 can recognize the receipt of specific investment funds from an installment investment customer 85 for a predetermined fund 21 as a specific receipt and distinguish it from the receipt of investment funds 82 from other installment investment customers 85, and if a specific receipt occurs, it can perform the processing shown in Figure 10.

[0111] Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating the decision-making process performed by the fund-specific order management unit 80 when it receives specific investment funds from a split-investment customer 85. Receiving specific investment funds from a split-investment customer 85 refers, for example, to receiving investment funds 82 for the initial purchase of a hedge fund by the split-investment customer 85 immediately after the contract is concluded.

[0112] As shown in step S201 of Figure 10, when the fund-specific order management unit 80 receives input indicating that a specific receipt of investment funds 82 from a split investment customer 85 has occurred, it makes the decision shown in Figure 10. First, in step S202, the fund-specific order management unit 80 checks whether there are any other investment funds 82 from other split investment customers 85 whose remittance procedures to a foreign investment company for a predetermined fund 21 related to the specific receipt are on hold. If there are no other investment funds 82 from other split investment customers 85 that are on hold, it makes a decision to hold the remittance procedures to the foreign investment company (step S203).

[0113] On the other hand, if there are investment funds 82 of other divided investment customers 85 that are on hold, the process proceeds to step S204 to confirm the total amount of remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 of the other divided investment customers 85 that are on hold. Furthermore, in step S204, if there are investment funds 82 of other divided investment customers 85 that are on hold, but the sum of the remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 of the divided investment customers 85 that are on hold and the remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 newly received as a specific receipt is less than the minimum remittance amount, the process proceeds to step S206 to decide to hold off on the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company.

[0114] On the other hand, in step S204, if there are investment funds 82 of the divided investment customers 85 that are on hold, and the sum of the remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 of the divided investment customers 85 that are on hold and the remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 newly received as specified receipts is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount, then the process proceeds to step S205, where a decision is made to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company for the investment funds 82 of the divided investment customers 85 that are on hold and newly received. Note that the investment funds 82 of the divided investment customers 85 that are on hold include investment funds 82 that were received as specified receipts with respect to the specified fund 21 before processing.

[0115] According to the fund-specific order management department 80's records for August in the example shown in Figure 7, at the time of remittance (August 1), investment funds 82 were received from eight split investment customers 85 ("Customer 02" to "Customer 08", "Customer 10"). Therefore, the total of the remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to these investment funds 82 was less than the minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company (80,000 US dollars) (Step S002 in Figure 8). Consequently, the fund-specific order management department 80 decided to suspend the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company for these split investment customers 85 (Step S004 in Figure 8), and the remittance procedure scheduled for the following day (August 2) was suspended.

[0116] Subsequently, on "August 3rd," an entry is recorded indicating that "Customer 11," who is a split investment customer 85, has made a specific receipt of investment funds 82 (receipt of the first installment of investment funds 82 for the split investment). At this time, the fund-specific order management unit 80 confirms that there are investment funds 82 belonging to split investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to the foreign investment company is on hold (step S202 in Figure 10). Furthermore, it confirms that the sum of the remittance foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 of split investment customer 85 that are on hold and the remittance foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the investment funds 82 newly received as a specific receipt (US$90,000) is less than the minimum remittance amount, and makes a decision to hold the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company (step S206). As a result, the remittance procedure for split investment customer 85 ("Customer 11") received on "August 3rd" is on hold as of "August 3rd."

[0117] Furthermore, in the example shown in Figure 7, an entry is recorded indicating that on "August 5th," a specific receipt of new investment funds 82 was received from "Customer 12," who is a split investment customer 85. At this time, the fund-specific order management unit 80 confirms that there are investment funds 82 of a split investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to the foreign investment company is pending (step S202 in Figure 10), and further confirms that the sum of the remittance foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the pending investment funds 82 of the split investment customer 85 and the remittance foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to the newly received investment funds 82 (US$100,000) is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount, and makes a decision to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company for both the pending and newly received investment funds 82 of the split investment customer 85 (step S205). As a result, the remittance procedure for the split investment customer 85 for August, which had been pending, is carried out on "August 5th" together with the remittance procedure for the split investment customer 85 ("Customer 12") related to the new specific receipt.

[0118] Furthermore, according to the fund-specific order management department 80's records for September in the example shown in Figure 7, at the time of remittance (September 1st), investment funds 82 were received from 10 installment investment customers 85 ("Customer 03" to "Customer 12"). Therefore, the total of the remitted foreign currency funds 83 corresponding to these investment funds 82 is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount to the foreign investment company (100,000 US dollars) (Step S002 in Figure 8). Accordingly, the fund-specific order management department 80 decided to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company for these installment investment customers 85 (Step S003 in Figure 8), and the remittance procedure was carried out the following day (September 2nd).

[0119] Subsequently, on "September 3rd," an entry is recorded indicating that investment funds 82 were specifically received from "Customer 13," who is a split investment customer 85. At this time, the fund-specific order management unit 80 confirms that there are no investment funds 82 belonging to split investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to the foreign investment company is on hold (step S202 in Figure 10), and makes a decision to hold the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company (step S203). As a result, the remittance procedure for split investment customer 85 ("Customer 13"), which was received on "September 3rd," is on hold as of "September 3rd."

[0120] Furthermore, according to the fund-specific order management department 80's records for September in the example shown in Figure 7, investment funds 82 were received from a regular investment customer 87 ("customer 73") on "September 5th". At this time, the fund-specific order management department 80 confirmed that there were investment funds 82 from a split investment customer 85 whose remittance procedure to a foreign investment company was on hold (step S102 in Figure 9), and decided to carry out the remittance procedure for the held split investment customer 85 ("customer 13") together with the remittance procedure for regular investment customer 87 ("customer 73") (step S104 in Figure 9). As a result, the remittance procedure for the held split investment customer 85 ("customer 13") was carried out on "September 5th" together with the remittance procedure for regular investment customer 87 ("customer 73").

[0121] According to this fund-specific order management unit 80, even if the initial investment funds 82 of a split investment customer 85 are received after the remittance decision period for that month, if there are pending remittance procedures for split investment customers 85 or remittance procedures for regular investment customers 87, the delay in the initial purchase timing of the split investment customer 85 can be suppressed. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 7, the fund-specific order management unit 80 can calculate the total number of remittances (how many remittances have been made) for each split investment customer 85 at the calculation base date, and can recognize that remittances for split investment customers 85 have been completed in a given month. For example, for "Customer 01" shown in Figure 7, the fund-specific order management unit 80 records that the remittance for July was the last remittance, and that remittances have been completed since August.

[0122] The hedge fund trading management system 10 according to the present invention has been described above with reference to embodiments. However, the hedge fund trading management system 10 shown in Figures 1 to 10 is only one embodiment, and it goes without saying that the present invention includes many other embodiments and variations. For example, the system that enables investment by segmented investment customers 85 shown in Figures 7 to 10 is merely one example, and it is also possible to handle this using a system different from the embodiments, such as managing segmented investment customers 85 and regular investment customers 87 with separate systems. Furthermore, the fund-specific investment target management unit 20, the fund-specific order management unit 80, and the hedge fund execution management unit 96 shown in Figure 2 can each be separate systems.

[0123] Figure 11 is a functional block diagram of the hedge fund trading management system 110 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. As can be seen from a comparison between Figure 11 and Figure 2, the hedge fund trading management system 110 according to the second embodiment differs from the hedge fund trading management system 10 according to the first embodiment in that the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 is different, but the other fund-specific order management unit 80 and hedge fund execution management unit 96, etc., are the same as those of the hedge fund trading management system 10 shown in Figure 2. The description of the hedge fund trading management system 110 will focus on the differences from the hedge fund trading management system 10 according to the first embodiment, and the similarities with the hedge fund trading management system 10 will be omitted from the explanation.

[0124] The fund-specific investment target management unit 120 shown in Figure 11 manages customers stored in the customer information storage unit 12 for each fund to which the customer is solicited, similar to the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 shown in Figure 2. However, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 stores customers within the first period 37, where the period from the solicitation date 41 when an investment in a predetermined fund was solicited to the calculation base date 30 is within the first period 37, in a way that allows them to be classified separately from other customers, using an arbitrary calculation base date as a variable. In other words, customers within the framework 140 are classified based on the solicitation date 41 when an investment in a predetermined fund was solicited to that customer and the calculation base date 30. Whether or not the customer has made an investment in the predetermined fund, and when the contract date will be, are not considered in determining whether or not the customer is included in the framework 140.

[0125] Figure 12 is a conceptual diagram summarizing the information stored by the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Unit 120, the parameters used when calculating from the stored information, and the calculated values ​​calculated by the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Unit 120. The Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Unit 120 calculates the number of customers 82 that can be solicited for a given fund 21 on the calculation reference date 30 by subtracting the number of customers 140 within the framework for a given fund 21 from the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations 36 for the given fund 21.

[0126] Figure 13 is a conceptual diagram showing the information stored by the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 in the hedge fund trading management system 110 shown in Figure 11, and the results calculated from the stored information (third example). As shown in Figure 13, the hedge fund trading management system 110 stores the solicitation date 41 on which solicitation to the predetermined fund 21 was made for customers 01 to 49 who are targets for solicitation to the predetermined fund 21. In Figure 13, "K" indicates the solicitation date 41 for "customer 01" to "customer 49" shown in the first column.

[0127] As shown in Figure 13, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 of the hedge fund trading management system 110 stores the solicitation date 41 (indicated as "K" in Figure 13) for each of the "customers 01" to "customers 49". By using an arbitrary calculation base date as a variable, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can grasp the status of the customers 140 within a given fund 21.

[0128] For example, in the example shown in Figure 13, if the calculation base date 30 is set to "June 3rd", there are 5 customers ("Customer 01" to "Customer 05") within the specified fund 21. Also, if the calculation base date 30 is set to "August 30th", there are 49 customers ("Customer 01" to "Customer 49") within the specified fund 21.

[0129] In this way, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can calculate the number of customers within the target range 140 by storing the solicitation date 41 for customers who have been solicited to a predetermined fund 21, using an arbitrary calculation reference date as a variable. In this case, the calculation reference date 30 used by the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 during the calculation may be the current day at the time of calculation, a day in the past from the time of calculation, or a day in the future from the time of calculation.

[0130] Furthermore, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 120 calculates the number of customers who can be solicited for a given fund 21 on the calculation reference date 30 by subtracting the number of customers 140 within the quota for a given fund 21 from the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations for a given fund 21, which is 36 (49 people). In Figure 13, the row in the leftmost column labeled "Used Quota" shows the number of customers 140 within the quota for a given fund 21, and the row in the leftmost column labeled "Available Quota" shows the calculated number of customers 72 (see Figure 12) who can be solicited for a given fund 21 on the calculation reference date 30.

[0131] For example, in the example shown in Figure 13, if the calculation base date 30 is set to "June 3rd," the number of customers who can be solicited on calculation base date 30, 72, is "44," which is obtained by subtracting the number of customers within the quota, 140 ("5"), from the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations, 36 ("49"). Also, if the calculation base date 30 is set to "August 30th," the number of customers who can be solicited on calculation base date 30, 72, is obtained by subtracting the number of customers within the quota, 140 ("49"), from the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations, 36 ("49"). In this way, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can calculate the number of customers who can be solicited on calculation base date 30 for any given calculation base date 30.

[0132] Furthermore, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can calculate not only the number of customers that can be solicited 72, but also the scheduled date 71 (see Figure 12) on which new solicitations will become possible for a given fund. Specifically, if the number of customers that can be solicited 72 for a given fund 21 is 0 when the calculation base date 30 is set as the first calculation base date 31, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 calculates the second calculation base date 32, which is the closest future calculation base date 30 from the first calculation base date 31 on which the number of customers that can be solicited 72 becomes 1 or more, as the scheduled date 71 on which new solicitations will become possible for the given fund 21.

[0133] For example, in the example shown in Figure 13, assuming that the current date at the time of calculation is "August 30th," and that this current date is designated as the first calculation reference date 31, the number of solicitable customers 72 is "0." Thus, on the first calculation reference date 31, where the number of solicitable customers 72 is "0," it means that it is currently not possible to solicit new customers for the given fund 21.

[0134] In such a case, for example, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 120 calculates the number of solicitable customers 72 at each calculation base date 30 by changing the calculation base date 30 one day into the future until the number of solicitable customers 72 is 1 or more. In this way, the Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 120 can find the second calculation base date 32, which is the closest future calculation base date 30 from the first calculation base date 31 where the number of solicitable customers 72 is 1 or more, and calculates that second calculation base date as the planned date on which new solicitations will become possible for the specified fund 21.

[0135] More specifically, if the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on the first calculation base date 31, "August 30th," is "0," the fund-specific investment target management department 120 changes the calculation base date 30 by one day to "August 31st" as the new calculation base date 30, and calculates the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on "August 31st." In the example shown in Figure 13, the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on "August 31st" remains "0." Then, the fund-specific investment target management department 20 changes the calculation base date 30 by another day to "September 1st" as the new calculation base date 30, and calculates the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on "September 1st." In the example shown in Figure 13, the number of customers that can be solicited 72 on "September 1st" is "3." Therefore, through this calculation, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can determine that the second calculation base date 32, which is the closest future calculation base date from the first calculation base date 31 where the number of solicitable customers 72 is 1 or more, is "September 1st". Furthermore, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can display "September 1st", the second calculation base date 32, as the planned date 71 on which new solicitations become possible for a given fund 21, on a display unit or the like.

[0136] Furthermore, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 shown in Figure 11, like the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 shown in Figure 2, has a prospective customer storage unit 50 that stores prospective customers 52 who are expected to be solicited to invest in a predetermined fund 21. The prospective customer storage unit 50 can store multiple prospective customers 52 with a ranking system. The ranking assigned to the prospective customers 52 is, for example, a priority order for assigning solicitation slots. When a higher-ranking prospective customer 52 is solicited and that prospective customer 52 becomes an uncontracted customer 40 or a contracted customer 46, the ranking of the lower-ranking prospective customer 52 moves up.

[0137] In the example shown in Figure 13, "Customer 50" to "Customer 54" are prospective customers 52 stored in the prospective customer storage unit 50 of the fund-specific investment target management unit 120, and five prospective customers are stored in the prospective customer storage unit 50. The number of prospective customers 52 stored in the prospective customer storage unit 50 is not particularly limited, but if multiple prospective customers 52 are stored, a priority order is assigned to each prospective customer 52 to allocate a solicitation slot. In the example shown in Figure 4, the priority order 54 is assigned in the following order: "Customer 50", "Customer 51", "Customer 52", "Customer 53", and "Customer 54".

[0138] When a prospective customer 52 is registered for a designated fund 21, if there are available slots in the designated fund that are ranked higher than or equal to the prospective customer 52's rank, it is possible to immediately solicit the prospective customer 52 for the designated fund 21. However, as shown in the example in Figure 13, if the number of customers who can be solicited for the designated fund 21 is less than the prospective customer 52's rank, it is not possible to solicit the prospective customer 52 for the designated fund 21 at that time. In such cases, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can calculate the expected date on which it will be possible to solicit the prospective customer 52 for the designated fund 21.

[0139] In other words, with respect to a given fund 21, if the number of solicitable customers 72 on the calculation base date 30 is set as the first calculation base date 31 is less than the ranking of the first prospective customer (for example, "customer 50"), which is one of the prospective customers 52, the third calculation base date 33, which is the closest future calculation base date 30 from the first calculation base date 31 where the number of solicitable customers is equal to or greater than the ranking of the first prospective customer, is calculated as the prospective date 75 on which solicitation of the given fund 21 to the first prospective customer becomes possible.

[0140] In the example shown in Figure 13, consider the case where the first calculation reference date 31 is "August 30th" and the first prospective customer is "Customer 50". Customer 50's rank among multiple prospective customers 52 is 1st. For a given fund 21, if the calculation reference date is set to the first calculation reference date 31, "August 30th", the number of customers that can be solicited (the number of "available slots") is less than the rank of the first prospective customer, "Customer 50", which is one of the prospective customers, which is "1". In this case, the fund-specific investment target management department 120 calculates the nearest future calculation reference date (third calculation reference date 33) from the first calculation reference date 31, "August 30th", where the number of customers that can be solicited for the given fund 21 is equal to or greater than the rank of the first prospective customer, "Customer 50", which is "1".

[0141] In the example shown in Figure 13, the number of customers who can be solicited into the specified fund 21 becomes "1" or higher, which is the rank of the first prospective customer "Customer 50," only when the third calculation reference date 33 is set to "September 1st." Therefore, the fund-specific investment target management department 120 calculates "September 1st" as the third calculation reference date 33 for the first prospective customer "Customer 50," which is the scheduled date 75 on which solicitation into the specified fund 21 becomes possible for the first prospective customer "Customer 50." The fund-specific investment target management department 120 can calculate the third calculation reference date 33 for the other prospective customers 52, namely "Customers 51" to "Customers 54," in the same manner as for "Customer 50," which is the scheduled date 75 on which solicitation into the specified fund 21 becomes possible for these prospective customers 52.

[0142] As shown in Figures 11 to 13, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can appropriately manage the number of people to be solicited for a given fund so that the number of people solicited does not exceed the maximum number of simultaneous solicitations 36 (49 people) for each of the first periods 37 (3 months). In addition, users of the hedge fund trading management system 110 can quickly find out how many additional customers can be solicited on any calculation date 30, and if there are no available solicitation slots for a given fund 21, they can immediately understand the scheduled date when new solicitations will become possible, thus enabling efficient solicitation of hedge funds, which are privately placed products for a small number of people. Furthermore, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 can also register prospective customers and calculate the scheduled date when solicitations will become possible for prospective customers, in the same way as the fund-specific investment target management unit 20 shown in Figure 2.

[0143] As can be seen from comparing Figure 3 and Figure 12, the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 of the hedge fund trading management system 110 according to the second embodiment can calculate the number of customers that can be solicited 72, the scheduled date 71 on which solicitation becomes possible, and the scheduled date 75 on which solicitation becomes possible for prospective customers, similar to the first embodiment. On the other hand, the hedge fund trading management system 110 according to the second embodiment calculates the available slot information for a given fund based on the number of customers 140 within the slot whose period from the solicitation date 41 on which investment was solicited to the calculation base date 30 is within the first period 37. Therefore, the calculated values ​​of the fund-specific investment target management unit 120 shown in Figure 12 do not include the estimated scheduled date 73 on which solicitation becomes possible, the confirmed scheduled date 73 on which solicitation becomes possible, etc., as shown in Figure 3.

[0144] The hedge fund trading management system 110 according to the second embodiment also has the same effects as the hedge fund trading management system 10 according to the first embodiment in terms of its common features with the hedge fund trading management system 10 according to the first embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0145] 10…Hedge fund trading management system 12...Customer information storage unit 14…Network communication network 15... Salesperson terminal 16… Terminal for managing received funds information 17… Remittance information management terminal 20…Fund-Specific Investment Target Management Department 21… Designated Fund 30…Calculation reference date 31…First calculation reference date 32…Second calculation reference date 33…Third calculation reference date 36...Maximum number of people to recruit simultaneously 37…First period 40…Uncontracted customers 41… Solicitation day 42…Information on unsuccessful transactions 46…Contracted customers 47…Date of contract completion 49... Other customers 50...Scheduled Customer Memory Unit 52…Planned Customers 71…Scheduled date when recruitment will be possible 72…Number of potential customers 73…Estimated date when recruitment will be possible 74... Confirmed date when recruitment becomes possible 80...Fund-Specific Order Management Department 81…Receiving Funds Storage Unit 82…Investment funds 83…Remittance of foreign currency funds 84…Return funds 85…Split investment customer 87…Regular investment customer 96... Hedge Fund Transaction Management Department 97...Purchase status memory unit 98... Unit price at time of purchase

Claims

1. A customer information storage unit that stores information about customers who are solicited to invest, The company has a fund-specific investment target management department that manages the aforementioned customers according to the fund being solicited, The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management department stores, in a manner that distinguishes customers from other customers, based on an arbitrary calculation date, customers whose period from the solicitation date to the calculation date falls within the first period, using the solicitation date as a variable. The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management department calculates the number of customers that can be solicited for the aforementioned fund on the calculation reference date by subtracting the number of customers within the aforementioned framework for the aforementioned fund from the maximum number of people who can be solicited simultaneously for the aforementioned fund, The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management unit further includes a prospective customer storage unit capable of storing multiple prospective customers, in order of priority, who are expected to be solicited to invest in the aforementioned predetermined fund. The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management unit calculates, with respect to the predetermined fund, if the number of solicitable customers on the calculation reference date set as the first calculation reference date is less than the rank of the first prospective customer, which is one of the prospective customers, the third calculation reference date, which is the closest future calculation reference date from the first calculation reference date on which the number of solicitable customers becomes equal to or greater than the rank of the first prospective customer, as the prospective date on which solicitation of the predetermined fund to the first prospective customer becomes possible.

2. A customer information storage unit that stores information about customers who are solicited to invest, The company has a fund-specific investment target management department that manages the aforementioned customers according to the fund being solicited, The fund-specific investment target management unit stores the customers who have been solicited to invest in a predetermined fund in a way that allows them to be classified as a variable, into at least two types, including: uncontracted customers, who are customers whose investment in the predetermined fund is not finalized on the calculation base date, and who have finalized their investment in the predetermined fund, whose investment is finalized on the calculation base date, and whose investment is not finalized on the calculation base date, from the date of solicitation to the calculation base date. The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management unit calculates the number of customers that can be solicited for the aforementioned fund on the calculation reference date by subtracting the sum of the number of unsold customers and the number of sold customers for the aforementioned specified fund from the maximum number of people who can be simultaneously solicited for the aforementioned specified fund.

3. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, with respect to the predetermined fund, if the number of solicitable customers is 0 when the calculation reference date is set as the first calculation reference date, the second calculation reference date, which is the closest future calculation reference date from the first calculation reference date to which the number of solicitable customers becomes 1 or more, is calculated as the planned date on which new solicitations become possible with respect to the predetermined fund.

4. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 2, wherein, with respect to the predetermined fund, if the number of solicitable customers on the calculation reference date is set as the first calculation reference date is 0, the system calculates the date closest to the first calculation reference date that exceeds the first period from the solicitation date of at least one of the unsold customers on the first calculation reference date as the estimated date on which new solicitation becomes possible with respect to the predetermined fund.

5. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 2, wherein, with respect to the predetermined fund, if the number of solicitable customers on the calculation reference date is set as the first calculation reference date is 0, the system calculates the date closest to the first calculation reference date that exceeds the first period from the date of contract of at least one of the contracted customers on the first calculation reference date as the confirmed scheduled date on which new solicitations can be made for the predetermined fund.

6. The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management department may add non-contract information for each of the aforementioned uncontracted customers, which is information indicating that it has been decided that a contract will not be concluded after the solicitation date. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 2, wherein, with respect to the predetermined fund, if the number of solicitable customers when the calculation reference date is set as the first calculation reference date is 0, the earlier of the following dates becomes the confirmed scheduled date when new solicitations become possible for the predetermined fund: either the nearest future day from the first calculation reference date that exceeds the first period from the solicitation date of at least one of the unsold customers on the first calculation reference date for which the unsold customer information has been added, or the nearest future day from the first calculation reference date that exceeds the first period from the contract date of at least one of the sold customers on the first calculation reference date for which the sold customer has contracted,

7. The aforementioned fund-specific investment target management unit has a prospective customer storage unit that can store multiple prospective customers who are expected to be solicited to invest in the aforementioned predetermined fund, in a ranked order. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 2, wherein, with respect to the predetermined fund, if the number of solicitable customers on the calculation reference date is set as the first calculation reference date is less than the rank of the first prospective customer, who is one of the prospective customers, the third calculation reference date, which is the closest future calculation reference date from the first calculation reference date on which the number of solicitable customers becomes equal to or greater than the rank of the first prospective customer, is calculated as the prospective date on which it becomes possible to solicit the first prospective customer to the predetermined fund.

8. The system includes a fund-specific order management unit that manages the receipt of investment funds into the specified fund from the customer who has entered into an investment agreement for the specified fund. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the fund-specific order management unit has a received funds storage unit that stores the investment funds received from the customer, the foreign currency funds to be transferred from the investment funds to a foreign investment company that manages the predetermined fund, and the returned funds to be returned from the investment funds.

9. The system includes a hedge fund transaction management department that manages the results of purchases of the specified fund by the customer who has entered into an investment agreement for the specified fund. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 8, wherein the hedge fund transaction management unit has a purchase status storage unit that stores the purchase price of the predetermined fund purchased with the remitted foreign currency funds remitted to the foreign investment company, in association with the remitted foreign currency funds.

10. The fund-specific order management unit manages the investment funds by distinguishing between customers who have finalized an investment in the specified fund, specifically, customers who make installment investments over a predetermined number of months, where the amount of foreign currency remitted corresponding to the investment funds received in one installment is less than the minimum remittance amount for the specified fund, and regular investment customers whose amount of foreign currency remittance corresponding to the investment funds received in one installment is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount. The fund-specific order management unit makes a decision to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company if the total amount of the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds for a specified month received from one or more of the aforementioned fractional investment customers for the aforementioned specified fund is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount, and decides to postpone the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company if it is less than the minimum remittance amount. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein when the fund-specific order management unit receives the investment funds of the regular investment customer, it checks whether there are investment funds of the divided investment customer for which the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company is pending, and if there are no investment funds of the divided investment customer for which the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company is pending, it makes a decision to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company with respect to the investment funds of the regular investment customer, and if there are investment funds of the divided investment customer for which the remittance procedure to the divided investment customer for which the remittance procedure to the regular investment customer is pending, it makes a decision to perform the remittance procedure to the divided investment customer for which the remittance procedure to the regular investment customer is pending together with the remittance procedure to the investment funds of the regular investment customer.

11. The fund-specific order management unit can distinguish and recognize the receipt of specific investment funds from the divided investment customer with respect to the predetermined fund as a specific receipt, and if such a specific receipt has been made, it can confirm whether there are investment funds from other divided investment customers whose remittance procedures to the foreign investment company with respect to the predetermined fund are on hold, and the total amount of the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds of the other divided investment customers whose remittance procedures are on hold. If the investment funds of the pending installment investment customer do not exist, or if the investment funds of the pending installment investment customer exist but the sum of the total amount of the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds of the pending installment investment customer and the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds related to the specified receipt is less than the minimum remittance amount, then a decision will be made to suspend the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company. A hedge fund trading management system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein if there are investment funds held by the divided investment customers, and the sum of the total amount of the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds held by the divided investment customers and the remitted foreign currency funds corresponding to the investment funds related to the specified receipt is equal to or greater than the minimum remittance amount, the system makes a decision to proceed with the remittance procedure to the foreign investment company.

12. The fund-specific order management unit stores, for each of the divided investment customers, the month in which the transfer of the foreign currency funds to the designated fund was carried out. The hedge fund trading management system according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the fund-specific order management unit calculates the total number of transfers for each of the divided investment customers at the calculation reference date.

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