Information processing system, program, and information processing method

Abstract

To improve the efficiency of fund recovery for factoring companies. [Solution] In the first acquisition step, the processor of the information processing system acquires application information for factoring of the receivable and information regarding the creditor's account from the creditor of the receivable; in the second acquisition step, it acquires purchase information regarding the purchase of the receivable corresponding to the application information from the factoring business operator; and in the control step, it communicates with the financial institution system and outputs a transfer instruction to cause the financial institution system to transfer funds from the creditor's account to the factoring business operator's account when an amount corresponding to the purchase information is deposited into the creditor's account. The creditor's account is an account for which the factoring business operator has been granted the authority to transfer funds to the factoring business operator's account.

Description

Technical Field

[0004] ,

[0006] , , , ,

[0005] , , , , ,

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing system, a program, and an information processing method.

Background Art

[0002] Factoring is known as a method of raising funds by a creditor who holds a claim. Factoring is a service that cashes out a claim against a creditor by a factoring business operator purchasing the claim from the creditor. An example of an information processing system that supports such factoring is disclosed in Patent Document 1.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0007] The information processing system described in this disclosure makes it possible to improve the efficiency of fund recovery for factoring businesses. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing system. [Figure 2] This is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a service provider's system. [Figure 3] This diagram shows an example of the structure of an account information database. [Figure 4] This diagram shows an example of the structure of a purchase information database. [Figure 5] This is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of how an information processing system works when a creditor registers their creditor information with a factoring service provider. [Figure 6A] This is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of how the information processing system operates when setting up pre-payment transfers. [Figure 6B] This is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of how the information processing system operates when setting up pre-payment transfers. [Figure 7A]This figure shows an example of a user interface provided by the service provider system 10. [Figure 7B] This figure shows an example of a user interface provided by the service provider system 10. [Figure 8] This sequence diagram illustrates an example of how an information processing system works when a business purchases accounts receivable with a fixed amount from a creditor. [Figure 9] This sequence diagram illustrates an example of how an information processing system operates when sending billing information to a debtor on behalf of the creditor. [Figure 10] This sequence diagram illustrates an example of how an information processing system operates when purchasing accounts receivable whose amounts have not yet been determined. [Figure 11] This is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of the operation of an information processing system related to the remittance of accounts receivable. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The embodiments of this disclosure will be described below.

[0010] Figure 1 shows an example of the configuration of an information processing system in one embodiment. The information processing system 1 comprises a business operator system 10, a partner financial institution system 11, a creditor terminal 12, and a debtor terminal 13, all of which are interconnected and able to communicate with each other via a network 14.

[0011] The business system 10 is one or more server computers of a business that provides factoring services (hereinafter simply referred to as "the business"). The business may be a factoring business that is qualified to act as an electronic payment service provider. The business system 10 may be a system of server computers appropriately installed in one or more data centers, or it may be a cloud computing system.

[0012] The partnering financial institution system 11 is, for example, one or more server computers installed in the data center of the partnering financial institution. The partnering financial institution is a financial institution that has concluded a contract with a business operator that enables, for example, the transfer of funds from an opened creditor's account to the business operator's account to be executed by the authority of the business operator (hereinafter referred to as the transfer authority). The partnering financial institution system 11 may be a system of server computers appropriately installed in one or more data centers, or may be a cloud computing system. Here, the creditor is the original creditor of the claim subject to the factoring application and is a user of the factoring service provided by the factoring business operator. The debtor is the original debtor of the claim subject to the factoring application.

[0013] The creditor terminal 12 and the debtor terminal 13 are, for example, one or more personal computers. The creditor terminal 12 is operated by the creditor or an operator who has received the creditor's instructions, for example, a person in charge of applying for factoring of the claim. The debtor terminal 13 is operated by the debtor or an operator who has received the debtor's instructions, for example, a person in charge of making a payment to the creditor for the amount corresponding to the claim. The creditor terminal 12 and the debtor terminal 13 may be portable tablet terminal devices or smartphones.

[0014] The network 14 is, for example, a LAN (Local Area Network) within the business operator's business office, the Internet, an ad hoc network, a MAN (Metropolitan Area Network), a mobile communication network, or other network, or any combination thereof.

[0015] In the business operator system 10 in this embodiment, the processor of the server computer included in the business operator system 10 is configured to read out a program and execute the following steps according to the program. In the first acquisition step, the processor acquires application information for applying for factoring of a claim and information regarding the creditor's account from the creditor of the claim. Further, in the second acquisition step, the processor acquires purchase information regarding the purchase of the claim corresponding to the application information from the factoring business operator. Furthermore, in the control step, the processor communicates with the partnering financial institution system 11 and outputs a remittance instruction for causing the partnering financial institution system 11 to perform a remittance from the creditor's account to the business operator's account when a deposit of an amount corresponding to the purchase information is made to the creditor's account. The creditor's account is an account in which the factoring business operator is set with the authority to enable a remittance to the factoring business operator's account. By doing so, the business operator system 10 enables the business operator to surely collect the amount corresponding to the claim deposited in the creditor's account without delay. Furthermore, due to the operation of the business operator system 10, the creditor can be saved the trouble of remitting the amount corresponding to the claim to the business operator's account, thus contributing to an improvement in usability.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the business operator system 10. The business operator system 10 includes a communication unit 21, a storage unit 22, and a control unit 23.

[0017] The communication unit 21 includes a communication module corresponding to a wired or wireless LAN standard, a module corresponding to a mobile communication standard such as 4G (4th Generation), 5G (5th Generation), etc. The business operator system 10 is connected to the network 14 via the communication unit 21 through a nearby access point or a mobile communication network.

[0018] The storage unit 22 includes one or more memories. Each memory included in the storage unit 22 is, for example, a semiconductor memory, a magnetic memory, or an optical memory, but is not limited to these. A semiconductor memory is, for example, RAM (random access memory) or ROM (read-only memory). A RAM is, for example, SRAM (static random access memory) or DRAM (dynamic random access memory). A ROM is, for example, EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory). Each memory functions, for example, as a main memory, an auxiliary memory, or a cache memory. The storage unit 22 stores any information used in the operation of the operator system 10, as well as control and processing programs.

[0019] In this embodiment, the storage unit 22 stores an account information database 200 relating to accounts at affiliated financial institutions for each creditor.

[0020] As shown in Figure 3, the account information database 200 contains creditor information for each creditor and associated partner account information. The creditor information includes creditor registration information that identifies the creditor and basic creditor information regarding the creditor's attributes. The partner account information is information about the creditor's account at a partner financial institution (hereinafter referred to as "opened account"), and includes opened account information, setting instruction information, approval instruction information, and virtual account information. The opened account information includes information such as the name of the partner financial institution, branch name, account type, account number, and account holder name. Opened accounts include corporate accounts and individual accounts. The setting instruction information indicates whether the business system 10 has instructed the partner financial institution system 11 to set up remittance authority by the business. The approval instruction information indicates whether the business system 10 has received approval from the creditor terminal 12 regarding the setting up remittance authority by the business (hereinafter referred to as "approval instruction"). The virtual account information is information about virtual accounts that are virtually assigned in desired units subordinate to opened accounts, and includes the account number of the assigned virtual account and information indicating the setting unit of the virtual account. The unit for setting up a virtual account may be each claim linked to the same creditor, each transaction included in a claim, or each debtor of a transaction. Virtual account information functions as identification information for claims, transactions included in claims, or debtors of transactions. Furthermore, setting up and approving instructions for an opened account also apply to virtual accounts subordinate to that opened account. Hereinafter, opened accounts and virtual accounts at partner financial institutions are collectively referred to as partner accounts.

[0021] In this embodiment, the storage unit 22 stores a database 210 of purchase information related to the purchase of debts.

[0022] As shown in Figure 4, the purchase information database 210 contains purchase information for each debt. The purchase information includes creditor registration information, affiliated account information, application information (described later), and screening result information, all of which are associated with the identification information of the contract related to the purchase of the debt (purchase contract ID).

[0023] The control unit 23 has one or more processors. Each processor is a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor specialized for a specific process, but is not limited to these. General-purpose processors include, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). Instead of including processors, the control unit 23 may include one or more dedicated circuits. Dedicated circuits may include, for example, an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). The control unit 23 operates according to the control and processing programs stored in the memory unit 22, thereby comprehensively controlling the operation of the operator system 10 and executing the operations according to this embodiment.

[0024] The partner financial institution system 11 has a configuration equivalent to the communication unit 21, storage unit 22, and control unit 23 of the business operator system 10, provided that it is configured appropriately on one or more server computers. In the partner financial institution system 11, the storage unit appropriately stores information necessary for information processing in the partner financial institution system 11.

[0025] Furthermore, the creditor terminal 12 and the debtor terminal 13 each include a communication unit configured to connect to the network 14, a storage unit for temporarily or permanently storing various programs and data, a control unit that comprehensively controls the operation of each unit and performs the information processing in this embodiment, an input unit including an input device such as a keyboard, mouse, or touch panel for receiving operations for inputting information from the user, and an output unit including an output device such as a display or speaker for outputting information generated by the control unit or received by the communication unit to the user.

[0026] Next, an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 will be described. Figures 5-6B and 8-11 are sequence diagrams showing an example of the procedure for the coordinated operation of the business operator system 10, the affiliated financial institution system 11, the creditor terminal 12, and the debtor terminal 13. The example procedure of the business operator system 10 shown in Figures 5-6B and 8-11 may be executed by a single server computer, or it may be executed in an appropriate distributed manner by multiple server computers. The information processing procedure in Figures 5-6B and 8-11 is executed by the control unit 23 of the business operator system 10, or by the respective control units of the affiliated financial institution system 11, the creditor terminal 12, and the debtor terminal 13. Furthermore, the information sending and receiving procedure in Figures 5-6B and 8-11 is executed by the control unit 23 of the business operator system 10 via the communication unit 21, or by the respective control units of the affiliated financial institution system 11, the creditor terminal 12, and the debtor terminal 13 via the communication unit. Furthermore, the procedures for inputting and outputting information shown in Figures 5-6B and 8-11 are executed by the control units of the creditor terminal 12 and debtor terminal 13 via their respective input or output units. The various types of information processed or generated by the information processing shown in Figures 5-6B and 8-11, as well as the various types of information sent and received, are appropriately stored in the storage unit 22 of the business operator system 10, or in the storage units of the affiliated financial institution system 11, the creditor terminal 12, and the debtor terminal 13.

[0027] Figure 5 shows an example of the operation of Information Processing System 1 when a creditor registers creditor information with a factoring service provider.

[0028] In step S500, the creditor terminal 12 receives a user registration request and user registration information from the operator. The user registration request is a request to register as a user for the factoring (i.e., receivables purchase) service of the business operator, i.e., to register as a creditor. The user registration information is included in the creditor registration information for each creditor, such as creditor ID, password, creditor name, and contact information. The contact information is such as email address, address, telephone number, or fax number.

[0029] In step S501, the creditor terminal 12 sends a user registration request and user registration information to the business system 10. The creditor terminal 12 receives user registration requests and user registration information input from the operator via an application for the factoring service provided by the business system 10 on the Web, and sends it to the business system 10. The factoring service is not limited to being accessed via a web browser, but may also be provided by a dedicated program (e.g., an application, smartphone application or PC application) installed and executed on the creditor terminal 12, but is not limited to this.

[0030] In step S502, the business system 10 uses the user registration request and user registration information received from the creditor terminal 12 to perform user registration processing. User registration processing includes, for example, identity verification by telephone number authentication. If identity verification is successful, the business system 10 stores the user registration information as creditor registration information.

[0031] In step S503, the business system 10 notifies the creditor terminal 12 that user registration is complete.

[0032] In step S504, the creditor terminal 12 receives basic creditor information from the operator. Basic creditor information includes, for example, information about the creditor's business, representative, and factoring service usage history. Business information includes, for example, business type, company name, corporate number, number of employees, industry, company website, and business description. Representative information includes, for example, the representative's name, date of birth, and contact information. Factoring service usage history is, for example, the usage history of factoring services by other companies. Representative information also includes, for example, the representative's identification documents (e.g., health insurance card) or the creditor's company registration certificate as supporting documentation. Basic creditor information further includes information about the bank account to which the purchase price of the receivables will be transferred. The transfer account is an account opened at a financial institution where the creditor wishes to receive the purchase price of the receivables, and may be different from a partner account.

[0033] In step S505, the creditor terminal 12 sends the creditor's basic information to the business system 10.

[0034] In step S506, the business system 10 performs an initial screening process based on the received creditor basic information. In the initial screening process, for example, the business system 10 cooperates with the server computer of the credit information agency to determine whether the creditor is eligible to use the factoring service and the credit limit for the factoring service that the creditor can use.

[0035] In step S507, the business system 10 stores creditor basic information. For example, the business system 10 associates the creditor ID from the creditor registration information with the creditor basic information and stores it as creditor information. The creditor basic information may also include information on the results of the initial screening, such as the result of whether or not factoring services are available or information on the determined credit limit.

[0036] In step S508, the business system 10 sends the initial screening result information to the creditor terminal 12.

[0037] In this way, creditor information for each creditor is registered in the account information database 200 within the business system 10.

[0038] Using Figures 6A and 6B, we will explain an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 when setting up advance remittance. The operation procedure by the business operator system 10 in Figures 6A and 6B corresponds to the "first acquisition step" in this embodiment.

[0039] Figure 6A shows an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 when a creditor sets up an account with a partner financial institution through the business operator. Figures 7A and 7B show examples of user interfaces provided by the business operator system 10.

[0040] In step S600, the creditor terminal 12 receives an account opening request from the operator. The account opening request is a request to open an account with a partner financial institution. The creditor terminal 12, for example, receives user registration information from the operator and logs into the web application of the business operator's factoring service. The business operator system 10 displays an output screen 700 on the creditor terminal 12, for example, as shown in Figure 7A. On the output screen 700, the creditor terminal 12 receives an icon 701 from the operator indicating that they wish to open an account with the partner financial institution, "ABC Bank". Note that the output screen 700 may also include icons that allow the selection of two or more partner financial institutions.

[0041] In step S601, the creditor terminal 12 sends an opening request to the business system 10.

[0042] In step S602, the business system 10 sends the account opening request received from the creditor terminal 12 to the partner financial institution system 11. This partner financial institution system 11 is the system of the partner financial institution specified in the account opening request, for example, the system of "ABC Bank" selected on the output screen 700 in Figure 7A.

[0043] In step S603, the partner financial institution system 11 executes the process of opening an account based on the account opening request received from the business system 10. At this time, the partner financial institution system 11 communicates with the creditor terminal 12 to send and receive the information necessary for opening the account.

[0044] In step S604, the partner financial institution system 11 sends the opened account information, that is, the opened account information, to the business system 10.

[0045] In step S605, the business system 10 sends the account opening information received from the partner financial institution system 11 to the creditor terminal 12. The business system 10 causes the creditor terminal 12 to output an output screen 710, for example, as shown in Figure 7B. The output screen 710 includes the account opening information 712.

[0046] In step S606, the creditor terminal 12 receives a registration request from the operator. The registration request is a request to register the opened account with the business operator. For example, as shown in Figure 7B, the creditor terminal 12 receives a selection of an icon 711 from the operator on the output screen 710, indicating that the account should be linked to "ABC Bank".

[0047] In step S607, the creditor terminal 12 sends a registration request to the business system 10.

[0048] In step S608, the business system 10, in response to the registration request received from the creditor terminal 12, stores the opened account information in the account information database 200, associating it with the creditor information using the creditor ID. Here, the business system 10 may determine whether or not the opened account is a corporate account. For example, the business system 10 may determine that the opened account is a corporate account if the essential parts of the name of the account holder in the opened account information and the name of the creditor in the creditor information match.

[0049] In step S609, the business system 10 sends an instruction to the partner financial institution system 11 to set up remittance authority.

[0050] In step S610, the partner financial institution system 11 sets transfer authority for the opened account corresponding to the received configuration instructions.

[0051] In step S611, the business system 10 adds the history of the instructions for setting remittance authority to the setting instruction information in the account information database 200. Note that the order of steps S610 and S611 may be reversed.

[0052] In step S612, the creditor terminal 12 receives an approval instruction from the operator. For example, the creditor terminal 12 receives user registration information from the operator and logs into the web application of the factoring service of the business operator. On the displayed screen, the creditor terminal 12 accepts the operator's selection of an icon indicating an approval instruction.

[0053] In step S613, the creditor terminal 12 sends an approval instruction to the business system 10.

[0054] In step S614, the business system 10 adds the history of receiving approval instructions to the approval instruction information in the account information database 200. The business system 10 identifies the approval instruction information corresponding to the approval instruction, for example, using the creditor ID.

[0055] Figure 6B shows an example of the operation of Information Processing System 1 when a creditor directly opens an account with a partner financial institution.

[0056] In step S650, the creditor terminal 12 receives an account opening request from the operator. For example, the creditor terminal 12 receives the operator's selection of an icon indicating an application to open an account on the screen of an application provided by the partner financial institution specified in the account opening request.

[0057] In step S651, the creditor terminal 12 sends an account opening request to the partner financial institution system 11.

[0058] In step S652, the partner financial institution system 11 executes the process of opening an account in response to the account opening request received from the creditor terminal 12. At this time, the partner financial institution system 11 communicates with the creditor terminal 12 to send and receive the information necessary for opening the account.

[0059] In step S653, the partner financial institution system 11 sends the opened account information to the creditor terminal 12.

[0060] In step S654, the creditor terminal 12 receives a registration request from the operator. For example, the creditor terminal 12 receives user registration information from the operator and logs into the factoring service of the business operator. On the displayed screen, the creditor terminal 12 accepts the operator's selection of an icon indicating the registration of an opened account.

[0061] In step S655, the creditor terminal 12 sends a registration request along with the account opening information to the business system 10. The account opening information may be entered by the operator along with the registration request in step S654, or it may be read from the storage unit of the creditor terminal 12.

[0062] In step S656, the business system 10 associates the received account opening information with creditor information and creditor ID and stores it in the account information database 200.

[0063] In this way, the affiliated account information is registered in the account information database 200 within the business system 10.

[0064] Figure 8 shows an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 when a business operator purchases a receivable with a fixed amount from a creditor. The operation procedure of the business operator system 10 shown in Figure 8 corresponds to the operation procedure centered on the "second acquisition step" in this embodiment.

[0065] In step S800, the creditor terminal 12 and the debtor terminal 13 receive information from their respective operators indicating a claim for which goods or services have been provided to the debtor (i.e., a transaction has been completed) and the amount of accounts receivable has been determined (hereinafter referred to as a "confirmed claim"). The information indicating a confirmed claim includes information such as the amount of accounts receivable and the payment due date from the debtor to the creditor.

[0066] In step S801, the creditor terminal 12 receives application information from the operator. For example, the creditor terminal 12 receives user registration information from the operator and logs into the factoring service of the business operator. On the displayed screen, the creditor terminal 12 accepts input of application information. The application information includes the application amount for the factoring service, billing information, creditor credit information, etc. The application amount is the amount the creditor wishes to have the receivable purchased. The billing information is information regarding the creditor's billing of the receivable from the debtor, and includes the debtor's name, contact information, amount of the confirmed receivable, payment due date, etc. The billing information is accompanied by supporting documents in file format, such as invoices for confirmed receivables issued by the creditor to the debtor, and transaction documents related to the transaction of confirmed receivables between the creditor and the debtor. Transaction documents include transaction contracts, quotations, or purchase orders. Creditor credit information is information regarding the creditor's creditworthiness over the past few months to several years, such as account deposit and withdrawal statements and financial statements. Creditor credit information may be attached, for example, in file format.

[0067] In step S802, the creditor terminal 12 sends the application information to the business system 10.

[0068] In step S803, the business system 10 processes a review to determine whether the receivable can be purchased (factoring feasible) based on the application information received from the creditor terminal 12. The business system 10 uses creditor basic information, application information, and at least one of external information to determine whether the creditor and debtor are eligible for credit. External information includes information on the internet obtained by crawling using generation AI (Artificial Intelligence), etc., and credit information provided by credit agencies, etc. Credit is determined to be possible if at least one of the following criteria is met: company profile, financial status, authenticity of supporting documents, social reputation, or frequency of use of factoring services. Company profile includes the year of establishment of the corporation, capital, or number of employees. Financial status includes financial information such as sales and operating profit in the balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement, etc. The requirement for authenticity of supporting documents may include the agreement between the invoice or transaction document attached as supporting document and the receivable or transaction details, or the agreement between the invoice or transaction document and the application information. Social reputation includes whether or not the applicant is affiliated with anti-social forces. Credit checks may also take into account, for example, whether or not there are records of interviews or on-site investigations with the creditor, if the application amount exceeds a predetermined threshold. The business system 10, for example, scores and aggregates the results of the determined credit approval / disapproval for each item, and determines that the receivable can be purchased, provided that the aggregated credit approval / disapproval results are within the range of a predetermined threshold. If it is determined that the receivable can be purchased, the business system 10 determines the purchase price of the receivable and the fee for purchasing the receivable. The purchase price is determined, for example, to be an amount that is less than or equal to the application amount, based on the score obtained as a result of the credit approval / disapproval, provided that the application amount does not exceed the amount of the receivable or the credit limit. The fee may be determined, for example, by the period until the payment due date of the receivable, or by the application amount, whether or not a mailing service is requested, whether or not an account is linked, the amount of the receivable, or the frequency of using the factoring service.

[0069] In step S804, the business system 10 sends the review result information to the creditor terminal 12. If the review result information determines that the debt can be purchased, it includes information indicating that the debt can be purchased, as well as information about the determined purchase amount and fees. Alternatively, if the review result information determines that the debt cannot be purchased, it includes information indicating that the debt cannot be purchased.

[0070] In step S805, if it is determined that the debt can be purchased, the creditor terminal 12 receives acceptance information from the operator. The acceptance information is information indicating acceptance of the review result, that is, the purchase amount and fees.

[0071] In step S806, the creditor terminal 12 sends the consent information to the business system 10.

[0072] In step S807, the business system 10, upon receiving consent information from the creditor terminal 12, stores purchase information related to the purchase of the debt in the purchase information database 210. For example, the business system 10 generates a purchase contract ID and stores purchase information that associates the purchase contract ID with the application information and the screening result information. At this time, the business system 10 may, for example, store creditor registration information and affiliated account information identified by the creditor ID in association with the purchase contract ID.

[0073] In this way, the purchase information is registered in the purchase information database 210 within the business system 10.

[0074] In step S808, the business system 10 generates contract information based on the purchase information. The contract information includes information about the purchase agreement between the creditor and the business regarding the purchase of the debt. The contract information may be created by inputting the purchase agreement information by an operator of the business's terminal interfaced to the business system 10, or it may be created by methods such as file upload.

[0075] In step S809, the business system 10 sends contract information to the creditor terminal 12. The business system 10 may, for example, upload the contract information to a server computer in the cloud and send a link to the uploaded contract information to the creditor terminal 12.

[0076] In step S810, the creditor terminal 12 receives agreement information from the operator. The agreement information is information indicating agreement to the contract information. The agreement information is, for example, contract information with the creditor's electronic signature. Alternatively, the creditor terminal 12 may electronically sign the contract information on the cloud.

[0077] In step S811, the creditor terminal 12 sends the agreement information to the service provider system 10. Alternatively, the creditor terminal 12 notifies the service provider system 10 that it has electronically signed the contract information on the cloud.

[0078] In step S812, the business system 10 outputs a transfer instruction for the purchase amount to the system of the financial institution where the business has a withdrawal account, based on the agreement information received from the creditor terminal 12. The business system 10 obtains the transfer destination account information from the transfer destination account information contained in the account information database 200. The purchase amount is calculated, for example, based on the purchase information, and is calculated by subtracting amounts such as fees and expenses from the purchase amount.

[0079] In step S813, the creditor terminal 12 communicates with the system of the financial institution that holds the transfer destination account to confirm that the purchase amount has been deposited into the transfer destination account.

[0080] Figure 9 shows an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 in a modified version of the "second acquisition step" shown in Figure 8. The creditor recovers the amount equivalent to the debt by demanding payment from the debtor, and here we show an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 when sending demand information to the debtor on behalf of the creditor.

[0081] Step S900 is described in the same way as step S800 in Figure 8.

[0082] In step S901, the creditor terminal 12 receives application information and a request for forwarding information from the operator. A request for forwarding information indicates a request to send invoice information to the debtor on behalf of the creditor. For example, the creditor terminal 12 receives user registration information from the operator and logs into the factoring service of the business operator. On the output screen, in addition to the input to select a purchase application, the creditor terminal 12 accepts the input to select a request for forwarding information. If a request for forwarding information has been received, the creditor has not issued an invoice to the debtor, so no invoice is attached as evidence.

[0083] In step S902, the creditor terminal 12 sends the application information and the request for proxy delivery to the business system 10.

[0084] In step S903, the business system 10 uses the application information and mailing request received from the creditor terminal 12 to process the review of whether or not to purchase the debt, similar to step S803 in Figure 8. When a mailing request is received, the business system 10 determines a lower fee than when only a debt purchase application is received. By determining a lower fee when a mailing request is received in this way, it is possible to encourage creditors to use the mailing request service.

[0085] Steps S904 to S907 are described in the same way as steps S804 to S807 in Figure 8.

[0086] In step S908, the business system 10 generates contract information based on the purchase information. The contract information includes information on the purchase contract and information on the contract for the delivery agency request.

[0087] Steps S909 to S911 are described in the same way as steps S809 to S811 in Figure 8.

[0088] In step S912, the business system 10 generates payment request information. Payment request information is information that prompts the debtor to deposit the amount corresponding to the claim into the partner account. The business system 10 generates payment request information based on the application information or the request information included in the application information. The business system 10 obtains information on the partner account from the account information database 200 or the purchase information database 210.

[0089] In step S913, the business system 10 sends payment request information to the debtor. The business system 10 sends the payment request information based on the debtor's contact information included in the request information. For example, the business system 10 sends the payment request information electronically to the debtor terminal 13 via email or SMS to the debtor's email address or telephone number. Alternatively, the business system 10 may print the payment request information to an interfaced printer for, for example, mailing or faxing to the debtor.

[0090] In step S914, the business system 10 sends payment request information to the debtor and then outputs a transfer instruction, similar to step S812 in Figure 8.

[0091] Step S915 is described in the same way as step S813 in Figure 8.

[0092] Figure 10 shows an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 in a further modified version of the "second acquisition step" shown in Figure 8. While Figure 8 showed an example procedure for "confirmed receivables," Figure 10 shows an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 when purchasing receivables whose accounts receivable amount has not yet been determined (hereinafter referred to as "future receivables").

[0093] Future receivables are claims for which goods or services are intended to be provided to the debtor. Furthermore, future receivables may also be claims for future accounts receivable that have not yet arisen, or claims that are expected to arise in the future from the debtor. Future receivables include, for example, claims for which goods or services have been continuously provided between the creditor and the debtor, and which are expected to continue to be provided repeatedly in the future. Therefore, in the purchase of future receivables, the same processing as in step S800 of Figure 8 does not occur.

[0094] In step S1000, similar to step S801 in Figure 8, the creditor terminal 12 receives the application information. When an application is made for the purchase of future receivables, the claim information included in the application information is based on the past transaction history of the transaction that will become the future receivable. In other words, the debtor's name and the debtor's contact information are the debtor's information from when the transaction that will become the future receivable was carried out in the past. The amount of the future receivable may be determined based on the past accounts receivable amount of the transaction that will become the future receivable or the accounts receivable amount that is expected to occur in the future. Alternatively, the amount of the future receivable may be determined based on the amount stipulated in the contract with the debtor that has already been concluded or is scheduled to be concluded (for example, a service contract). Furthermore, the amount of the future receivable may be determined taking into consideration the creditor's future business prospects.

[0095] Step S1001 is described in the same way as step S802 in Figure 8.

[0096] In step S1002, the business system 10 processes the assessment of whether or not to purchase the receivables, similar to step S803 in Figure 8. When an application is made for the purchase of future receivables, the requirements for the authenticity of the supporting documents include, for example, the consistency between past transaction details and past invoices or past, concluded, or planned transaction documents attached as supporting documents, or the consistency between past invoices or past, concluded, or planned transaction documents and the application information.

[0097] Steps S1003 to S1012 are described in the same way as steps S804 to S813 in Figure 8.

[0098] Figure 11 shows an example of the operation of the information processing system 1 related to the remittance of accounts receivable. The operation procedure of the business system 10 shown in Figure 11 corresponds to the "control step" in this embodiment.

[0099] In step S1100, the debtor terminal 13 receives a deposit instruction from the operator. The deposit instruction is an instruction to transfer the amount specified by input from the debtor's account to the partner account. Information about the partner account is obtained from information sent by the creditor (e.g., an invoice) or payment request information. When the debtor terminal 13 receives the deposit instruction, it outputs the deposit instruction. The destination of the output of the deposit instruction is the system of the financial institution that holds the debtor's account specified by the deposit instruction. The system of the financial institution that holds the debtor's account receives the deposit instruction and processes the withdrawal of the specified amount from the debtor's account and transfer it to the creditor's partner account.

[0100] In step S1101, the partner financial institution system 11 processes the deposit of funds into the partner account.

[0101] In step S1102, the partner financial institution system 11 sends deposit information to the business system 10. The deposit information is information relating to a deposit to a partner account and includes the transfer deposit account ID, deposit date, branch code and branch name of the partner account that received the deposit, account number of the partner account that received the deposit, name of the depositor, deposit amount, name of the remitter, name of the sending financial institution and sending branch name of the account from which the withdrawal originated, and information of the service company. The partner financial institution system 11 sends deposit information during periodic communication with the business system 10. Alternatively, the partner financial institution system 11 may send deposit information in the partner account to the business system 10 on the condition that the receipt processing is completed. The business system 10 can obtain information relating to deposits and withdrawals in the partner account from the partner financial institution system 11 by concluding a contract relating to the authority to remittances between the business and the partner financial institution.

[0102] In step S1103, the business system 10 uses the deposit information received from the affiliated financial institution system 11 to determine whether a deposit corresponding to the purchase information has been made. The business system 10 determines that a deposit corresponding to the purchase information has been made by comparing the deposit information with the purchase information in the purchase information database 210. The business system 10 determines whether the deposit information and the purchase information match in at least one of the following: the debtor's name, the amount of the claim, and the account number of the creditor's affiliated account. Even if the information being compared is only a partial match, it is determined to be a match. For example, if the essential part of the notation of the debtor's name matches, it is determined that the name of the remitter in the deposit information matches the name of the debtor in the purchase information. Also, if the difference between the deposit date in the deposit information and the payment due date in the purchase information is within an arbitrary standard, it is determined that the deposit date in the deposit information matches the payment due date in the purchase information. Furthermore, if the amount of the claim in the purchase information and the deposit amount in the deposit information do not match, the business system 10 may determine that the deposit of the smaller of the two amounts has been made. For example, if a deposit amount is 1 million yen and the amount of the receivable in the purchase information associated with the deposit information is 500,000 yen, the business system 10 determines that a deposit of 500,000 yen corresponding to the purchase information has been made. Also, for example, if a deposit amount is 500,000 yen and the amount of the receivable in the purchase information associated with the deposit information is 1 million yen, the business system 10 determines that a deposit of 500,000 yen corresponding to the purchase information has been made, that is, a partial payment of the receivable has been made. Furthermore, the business system 10 may then use artificial intelligence such as a generation AI or a learning model to determine whether or not a deposit of the amount corresponding to the purchase information has been made. For example, the business system 10 may input an instruction to the generation AI to determine whether or not a deposit of the amount corresponding to the purchase information has been made based on the deposit information and the purchase information, and a prompt inserting the deposit information and the purchase information, and have the generation AI output the determination result. In this case, the generation AI extracts multiple features, such as the string pattern in the remitter's name included in the deposit information, the closeness of the amounts, and past transaction history, and calculates a score as the likelihood that the deposit information and the purchase information correspond based on a comparison of the extracted features.If this score exceeds a predetermined threshold, the business system 10 may determine that the two items are substantially corresponding and that a payment has been made. It is also possible to learn this pattern of determination and save it as a learning history, and to further reflect the saved learning history in the determination. The determination by artificial intelligence may be performed when no purchase information matching the payment information is found, or it may be performed on all payment information.

[0103] If a single claim corresponds to multiple transactions, and the affiliated account is a virtual account set up for one or more transactions, the business system 10 may identify the purchase information corresponding to the deposit information, provided that the account number of the deposit information matches the account number of the virtual account of the purchase information. This makes it possible to manage deposits separately by setting up a virtual account for each transaction or for each debtor, even if the debtor is different for each transaction. The virtual account may be set up on a per-claim basis, on a per-debtor basis, or at a further subdivided level of the debtor.

[0104] In step S1104, the business system 10 determines that the amount corresponding to the purchase information has been deposited into the creditor's partner account, and on that condition, outputs a remittance instruction to the partner financial institution system 11 to have the creditor's partner account transfer funds to the business's account. The business's account is an account opened at a financial institution where the business wishes to receive the amount corresponding to the purchase information. The amount to be transferred is the amount determined to correspond to the purchase information. The business system 10 may output a remittance instruction on the condition of either or both of the history of setting instruction output and the history of approval instruction receipt. The business system 10 determines the history of setting instruction output and the history of approval instruction receipt based on the setting instruction information and approval instruction information contained in the account information database 200 or the purchase information database 210.

[0105] In step S1105, the partner financial institution system 11 executes the remittance process in response to the remittance instruction received from the business system 10. The partner financial institution system 11 performs the process of transferring the amount specified by the remittance instruction from the partner account to the business account in cooperation with the system of the financial institution that holds the business account.

[0106] By following the procedures described above, businesses can reliably and promptly recover the amount equivalent to the debt deposited into the creditor's account.

[0107] The processing related to the setting instructions in steps S609 to S611 in Figure 6A can be executed at any time between the time the account opening information is stored in step S608 in Figure 6A or step S656 in Figure 6B, and before the deposit processing is performed in step S1101 in Figure 11. For example, the setting instructions may be output after receiving the acceptance information in step S806 in Figure 8, or after receiving the agreement information in step S811. The same explanation applies to Figures 9 and 10.

[0108] As a variation, the approval instruction processing in steps S612-S614 of Figure 6A can be executed at any point between the time the registration request is sent in step S607 of Figure 6A or step S655 of Figure 6B and before the deposit processing is performed in step S1101 of Figure 11. Alternatively, the approval instruction may be received together with the registration request in steps S606 and S607 of Figure 6A or steps S654 and S655 of Figure 6B and sent to the business system 10. Furthermore, the history of the receipt of the approval instruction may be stored in the account information database 200 together with the opened account information in step S608 of Figure 6A or step S656 of Figure 6B. Alternatively, the approval instruction may be received together with the application information in step S801 of Figure 8 and sent to the business system 10 together with the application information in step S802 of Figure 8. The history of receiving approval instructions may be stored in the purchase information database 210 as part of the purchase information after step S802 in Figure 8 or in step S807 in Figure 8. The same explanation applies to Figures 9 and 10.

[0109] As another variation, the registration request in step S654 of Figure 6B may be received together with the application information in step S801 of Figure 8. The registration request and account opening information in step S655 of Figure 6B may then be sent to the business system 10 together with the application information in step S802 of Figure 8. The process of storing the account opening information in step S656 of Figure 6B may be performed after step S802 of Figure 8 or as part of the purchase information in S807 of Figure 8. The same explanation applies to Figures 9 and 10.

[0110] As another variation, the process of accepting the examination results in steps S804-S806 of Figure 8 may be omitted. In other words, acceptance of the examination results may be replaced by the process of agreeing to the contract information in steps S808-S811. In this case, if the examination is performed in step S803 and it is determined that the debt can be purchased, the process proceeds to step S807 to generate and store the purchase information. The same explanation applies to Figures 9 and 10.

[0111] Furthermore, as another variation, the business system 10 sends a notice to the creditor terminal 12 prompting the debtor to make a payment, provided that it has not received payment information from the partner financial institution system 11 even a predetermined period before the due date of the claim. This process is executed after the transfer instruction is output in step S812 of Figure 8. The predetermined period is, for example, from one day to several weeks. Alternatively, if the business system 10 has received a request for forwarding, it may directly send a demand for payment for the amount corresponding to the claim to the debtor based on the debtor's contact information included in the billing information.

[0112] Furthermore, as another variation, the determination regarding the deposit in step S1103 of Figure 11 may be performed by the partner financial institution system 11. In this case, the business system 10 may send some or all of the purchase information used for determining the deposit to the partner financial institution system 11, receive a determination result from the partner financial institution system 11 indicating that the deposit has been determined to be for the amount corresponding to the purchase information, and output a remittance instruction to the partner financial institution system 11.

[0113] The above-described operating procedure for the information processing system 1 is for two-party factoring, where the factoring agreement is concluded only between the creditor and the business operator. However, in three-party factoring, where the agreement is concluded between the creditor, debtor, and business operator, and the debtor's consent is required for the conclusion of the factoring agreement, the contract information generated in step S808 in Figure 8, step S908 in Figure 9, or step S1007 in Figure 10 is further sent to the debtor terminal 13. This contract information includes information on the purchase agreement between the creditor, debtor, and business operator. The purchase agreement is concluded when the business operator system 10 receives agreement information not only from the creditor terminal 12 but also from the debtor terminal 13. The operating examples of the information processing system 1 described in Figures 5 to 6B and Figure 11 are applicable to both two-party and three-party factoring.

[0114] This embodiment can also be realized as a method, program, or storage medium recording a program that substantially corresponds to the operation of the business system 10 shown above, and it should be understood that these are also included in the scope of this disclosure. Furthermore, although this disclosure has been explained based on various drawings and embodiments, it should be noted that it will be easy for those skilled in the art to make various modifications and alterations based on this disclosure. Accordingly, it should be noted that these modifications and alterations are included in the scope of this disclosure. For example, the functions, etc., included in each means, each step, etc., can be rearranged in a way that is not logically contradictory, and it is possible to combine multiple means, steps, etc., into one or divide them.

[0115] For example, in the above embodiment, a program that performs all or part of the functions or processing of the business system 10 can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. The computer-readable recording medium includes non-temporary computer-readable media, such as a magnetic recording device, optical disc, magneto-optical recording medium, or semiconductor memory. The program can be distributed, for example, by selling, transferring, or lending a portable recording medium such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) or CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) on which the program is recorded. Alternatively, the program can be distributed by storing it in the storage of any server and transmitting it from any server to another computer. The program can also be provided as a program product. Embodiments of this disclosure can also take the form of a system, a program, and a storage medium on which the program is recorded (for example, an optical disc, magneto-optical disc, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, magnetic tape, hard disk, or memory card).

[0116] The implementation form of the program is not limited to application programs such as object code compiled by a compiler or program code executed by an interpreter, but may also be in the form of a program module embedded in an operating system. Furthermore, the program may or may not be configured so that all processing is performed only on the CPU on the control board. The program may be configured so that some or all of its processing is performed by another processing unit implemented on an expansion board or expansion unit attached to the board, as needed.

[0117] In the above embodiment, the operator system 10 performed various storage and control functions, but instead of the operator system 10, multiple external devices may be used. That is, various information and programs may be stored in a distributed manner across multiple external devices using blockchain technology or the like.

[0118] At least one of the devices included in the operator system 10 may be located outside the country in which the functions of the information processing system 1 are performed.

[0119] The embodiments of this model are not limited to the information processing system 1, but may also be an information processing method or a program. The information processing method comprises each step executed by the information processing system 1. The program causes a computer to execute each step of the information processing system 1. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0120] 10: Business System 11: Partner Financial Institution System 12: Creditor terminal 13: Debtor's terminal 14: Network 21: Communications Department 22: Storage part 23: Control Unit 200: Account Information Database 210: Purchase Information Database 700, 710: Output screen 701, 711: Icons 712: Account Opening Information

Claims

1. An information processing system, Equipped with a processor, The processor is configured to read a program and perform the following steps according to the program: In the first acquisition step, application information for factoring of the said receivable and information regarding the creditor's account are obtained from the creditor of the receivable. In the second acquisition step, the factoring company obtains purchase information regarding the purchase of the aforementioned receivables, corresponding to the application information. In the control step, communication is performed with the financial institution system of a financial institution different from the factoring business operator, and when the amount corresponding to the purchase information is deposited into the creditor's account, a transfer instruction is output to the financial institution system to transfer funds from the creditor's account to the factoring business operator's account, which is different from the creditor's account, and the creditor's account is an account for which the factoring business operator has been authorized to transfer funds to the factoring business operator's account. In the control step, the processor outputs the remittance instruction on the condition that it has received information indicating the creditor's approval of the setting of the authority by the factoring business operator and has output an instruction to the financial institution system to set the authority in the creditor's account in the financial institution system. Information processing system.

2. In claim 1, In the control step, the processor receives deposit information regarding the deposit into the creditor's account from the financial institution system, and by comparing the deposit information with the purchase information, determines that a deposit corresponding to the purchase information has been made. Information processing system.

3. In claim 2, In the control step, the processor outputs the remittance instruction on the condition that it has determined that a payment of the amount corresponding to the purchase information has been made. Information processing system.

4. In claim 1, The aforementioned claim corresponds to multiple transactions, and the aforementioned account is established to correspond to the aforementioned multiple transactions. Information processing system.

5. In claim 1, The aforementioned claim corresponds to multiple transactions, and the aforementioned account is set up for each of the aforementioned transactions. Information processing system.

6. In claim 1, In the control step, the processor outputs the transfer instruction for the second account even if it does not receive the approval information for the second account which is subordinate to the first account which received the approval information. Information processing system.

7. In claim 2, In the control step, the processor compares the deposit information with the purchase information using at least one of the following: the name of the debtor of the claim, the amount of the claim, and the account number of the creditor's account. Information processing system.

8. In claim 7, In the control step, if the creditor's account is a virtual account, the processor verifies by comparing the account number included in the deposit information and the purchase information; if the account is not a virtual account, it verifies by comparing the name of the deposit account holder included in the deposit information and the name of the debtor included in the purchase information. Information processing system.

9. In claim 1, The aforementioned application information includes claim information relating to the creditor's claim against the debtor, and creditor credit information relating to the creditor's creditworthiness. Information processing system.

10. In claim 9, In the control step, the processor determines whether or not to purchase the claim based on the application information. Information processing system.

11. In claim 10, In the control step, the processor generates the purchase information, which includes the purchase price of the claim and the commission for purchasing the claim. Information processing system.

12. In claim 11, The aforementioned claim includes claims for which the goods or services to the debtor have not yet been provided. Information processing system.

13. In claim 9, In the first acquisition step, the processor displays a selection screen configured to allow the user to select a request for a proxy service to send the invoice information to the debtor on behalf of the creditor, in addition to the factoring application. In the control step, when the delivery request is selected, the processor creates payment request information based on the billing information to prompt the debtor to deposit the amount corresponding to the claim into the account. Information processing system.

14. In claim 13, If the aforementioned request for forwarding the shipment is selected, the fees included in the purchase information will be set lower and / or the required information to be included in the application information will be set lower compared to when the aforementioned request for forwarding the shipment is not selected. Information processing system.

15. In the information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 14, A server having the aforementioned processor, An information processing system comprising a terminal capable of accessing the aforementioned server.

16. It is a program, A program that causes a computer to perform each step performed by the information processing system described in any one of claims 1 to 14.

17. Information processing method, An information processing method comprising each step performed by the information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 14.

Images