Funding on-line accounts

Abstract

A system generates an identifier when a consumer deposits cash, where a new unique identifier is generated with each transaction. The consumer receives the identifier and the identifier (along with the amount of cash deposit) is communicated to a payment provider for storage. The consumer may then access and fund an on-line account with the financial services provider by first accessing the account and entering the unique character identifier, which the system processes. If the identifier is valid, e.g., an actual stored identifier within the system associated with a cash amount, then the system transfers that amount to the consumer's account. At this point, the consumer may use the account to make an on-line transaction or purchase with the newly funded amount.

1 . A method of funding an on-line account, comprising:
 storing, by a processor of a payment provider, a first identifier corresponding to a value deposit from a user, wherein the first identifier includes information about the amount of the value deposit and is known to the user and the payment provider after the value deposit;   determining, by the processor, whether a second identifier provided by the user matches the first identifier and is valid; and   transferring on-line, by the processor, a cash equivalent of the value deposit to an account of the user with the payment provider if the second identifier matches the first identifier and is valid.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first identifier is unique to each value deposit. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first identifier comprises a sequence of characters, letters, and/or numbers. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising receiving the first identifier from a remote cash value deposit location. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating the first identifier. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the value deposit is cash. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising converting the value deposit to a cash value. 
     
     
         8 . A method of funding an on-line account, comprising:
 receiving a value deposit from a user;   providing, by a processor, the user with a unique identifier associated with the value deposit; and   communicating, by the processor, information about the value deposit to an on-line payment provider, wherein an on-line account of the user with the payment provider is funded on-line with a cash equivalent of the value deposit amount when the unique identifier is validated by the on-line payment provider.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the receiving is via a machine. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising generating the unique identifier after the receiving. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the unique identifier comprises a sequence of characters, letters, and/or numbers. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising receiving an entered cash amount from the user before the providing. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the providing comprises printing the identifier on a receipt. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the providing comprises encoding the identifier. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the encoding comprises encoding an RFID tag or printing a barcode. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the information comprises the unique identifier and value deposit amount. 
     
     
         17 . A method of funding an on-line account, comprising:
 depositing a value item;   receiving, from a processor, a unique identifier associated with the value item;   accessing the on-line account with a payment provider;   inputting the unique identifier; and   receiving, from the processor, confirmation of a cash equivalent of the value item transferred on-line into the on-line account with the payment provider if the unique identifier matches a valid identifier stored with the payment provider.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the value item is cash. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the depositing and the accessing are at different locations. 
     
     
         20 . A computer-readable medium containing instructions that cause a service provider facilitating financial transactions over a network to perform a method comprising:
 storing a first identifier corresponding to a value deposit from a user, wherein the first identifier includes information about the amount of the value deposit and is known to the user and a payment provider after the value deposit;   determining whether a second identifier provided by a user matches the first identifier and is valid; and   transferring on-line a cash equivalent of the value deposit to an account of the user with the payment provider if the second identifier matches the first identifier and is valid.   
     
     
         21 . The computer-readable medium of  claim 20 , wherein the first identifier is unique to each value deposit. 
     
     
         22 . The computer-readable medium of  claim 20 , wherein the method further comprises receiving the first identifier from a remote deposit location.