Financial Management System with Segmented Sub-Accounts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Parents face challenges in managing their children's online financial transactions due to the lack of control over purchases, protection of personal information, and difficulties in tracking spending, especially since children often do not have their own payment accounts and may not receive gift cards intended for them.
Innovation Solution
A network-based financial management system that allows parents to set up rules for access and spending limits, segregate funds, and monitor transactions in real-time, using a portal or application that includes a rule database, ruleset engine, and transaction engine to manage accounts and transactions securely.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If parents give children their own payment cards or sub-accounts for online purchases, then children can conveniently make transactions, but parents lose control over what, where, when, and how much the child may purchase
Solution Approach 1:
The payment system is segmented into a parent's primary account and a child's sub-account with separate access credentials. The child's sub-account is further segmented into controlled spending categories (e.g., allowed websites, spending limits, time restrictions) that can be independently managed. This segmentation allows the child to have independent transaction capability while the parent maintains granular control over specific aspects of spending.
2Ease of operation
If parents provide children with payment accounts, then children can make online purchases, but parents cannot easily track the amount of purchases made from each website by a child
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements real-time feedback mechanisms where the parent's portal continuously receives and displays transaction data from the child's sub-account. Each purchase is immediately reported to the parent with details including website, amount, time, and category. This feedback loop enables parents to monitor spending habits without interfering with the child's ability to make authorized purchases.
3Adaptability or versatility
If children use parental accounts for online transactions, then they can access payment services, but their personal information may be exposed to financial institutions and vendors
Solution Approach 1:
The child's sub-account acts as an intermediary layer between the child's personal information and external vendors/financial institutions. The sub-account holds its own access credentials that are used for transactions, so vendors only receive the sub-account's information, not the child's personal details. This intermediary structure allows children to access payment services while protecting their personal information from exposure.
4Quantity of substance
If parents want to give cash gifts to children for saving and future use, then the child receives funds, but parents cannot maintain these funds segregated from their own or track how much money the child has spent
Solution Approach 1:
The parental account is segmented into separate sub-accounts, each dedicated to a specific child. Funds gifted to a child are deposited into that child's sub-account, automatically segregating them from the parent's personal funds. Each sub-account has its own balance tracking, transaction history, and spending limits, enabling automatic tracking of gifted funds without requiring complex manual management systems.
Data Source
AI summary
The present teaching relates to methods, systems, and programming for financial management. In an example, a method for performing financial management is presented. A first set of rules associated with a first access credential to an account and a second set of rules associated with a second access credential to the account are provided. The second set of rules is at least partially different from the first set of rules. A determination is made whether the access credential received from a first user matches the first access credential. A first request related to the first user with respect to a transaction is received, and information regarding the transaction is extracted. At least one action is determined with respect to the first request based on the information and the first set of rules.