Overlay Network Routing Across Real-Time Payment Networks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Financial institutions face challenges in making real-time payments across different RTP networks due to regulatory differences and jurisdictional disparities, leading to incompatible networks that prevent direct transactions between non-member institutions.
Innovation Solution
A supernetwork system is implemented, comprising a global transaction router, participant status cache, and transaction ledger, which facilitates payments by connecting and routing transactions between different RTP networks through a supernetwork instance, allowing participation and transaction management across multiple networks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If financial institutions join multiple RTP networks to expand payment options, then payment versatility is improved, but network complexity and regulatory compliance difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an overlay network as an intermediary layer that sits between multiple RTP networks. This overlay network receives payment requests from one RTP network, routes them through appropriate protocols, and delivers them to the destination RTP network. The intermediary abstraction handles the complexity of multiple network protocols and regulatory requirements, allowing financial institutions to access multiple networks without directly managing each network's complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The overlay network is designed as a universal platform that can handle transactions across different RTP networks simultaneously. It implements a standardized interface that works with multiple underlying network protocols, allowing a single system to provide payment services across diverse networks. This multi-functionality enables financial institutions to join the overlay network once and gain access to multiple RTP networks through a unified interface.
2Speed
If direct payment routing is used between RTP networks, then transaction speed is improved, but compatibility between different networks is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The overlay network dynamically adjusts protocol parameters based on the source and destination RTP networks. It translates between different network protocols, message formats, and routing conventions while maintaining real-time transaction speeds. The system changes parameters such as message structure, authentication methods, and routing protocols to match the requirements of each specific network pair, enabling fast direct routing while maintaining broad compatibility.
3Reliability
If financial institutions join the same RTP network to enable direct payments, then transaction compatibility is improved, but network access flexibility is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the payment network architecture into multiple independent layers: individual RTP networks remain separate and independent, while the overlay network provides a higher-level abstraction. This segmentation allows each RTP network to maintain its own protocols and member requirements for reliability, while the overlay layer provides flexible access routes. Financial institutions can join the overlay network independently of specific RTP networks, gaining flexible access without compromising the compatibility guarantees of individual networks.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are various embodiments for facilitating payments between members of separate payment networks. A first instance of a supernetwork can receive a payment request from a source network hub connected to the first supernetwork instance and linked to a first payment network, the first payment request specifying an identifier for a recipient institution and an amount of the payment request. The first instance of the supernetwork can then query a participant status cache to identify a destination network hub linked to a second payment network associated with the recipient institution. Next, the first instance of the supernetwork can query a participant registry to identify a second supernetwork instance connected to the destination network hub. Finally, the first instance of the supernetwork can forward the payment request to a second global transaction router hosted by a second supernetwork instance connected to the destination network hub.