Secure electronic billing with real-time payment settlement

Abstract

A method including receiving, at a payment-messaging system from a payee financial institution, a request for payor profile information. The request can include a public identifier of a payor. The acts also can include determining, using a directory at the payment-messaging system, the payor profile information based on the request. The payor profile information can include a routing transit number for a payor financial institution that maintains a payor account of the payor when the payor financial institution is enabled to send real-time payments through a real-time settlement network. The payor profile information does not include an account number of the payor account. The acts additionally can include sending, from the payment-messaging system to the payee financial institution, the payor profile information, to cause: the payee financial institution to determine whether the payor profile information includes the routing transit number for the payor financial institution; and the payee financial institution, when the payor profile information includes the routing transit number for the payor financial institution, to send a request for payment through the real-time settlement network to the payor financial institution to allow the payor to authorize a real-time credit transfer from the payor account to a payee account of a payee maintained at the payee financial institution. The real-time credit transfer can be settled through the real-time settlement network. Other embodiments are disclosed.

1 . A system comprising:
 one or more processors; and   one or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing computing instructions that, when executed on the one or more processors, perform:
 receiving, at a payment-messaging system from a payee financial institution, a request for payor profile information, wherein the request comprises a public identifier of a payor; 
 determining, using a directory at the payment-messaging system, the payor profile information based on the request, wherein the payor profile information includes a routing transit number for a payor financial institution that maintains a payor account of the payor when the payor financial institution is enabled to send real-time payments through a real-time settlement network, and wherein the payor profile information does not include an account number of the payor account; and 
 sending, from the payment-messaging system to the payee financial institution, the payor profile information, to cause:
 the payee financial institution to determine whether the payor profile information includes the routing transit number for the payor financial institution; and 
 the payee financial institution, when the payor profile information includes the routing transit number for the payor financial institution, to send a request for payment through the real-time settlement network to the payor financial institution to allow the payor to authorize a real-time credit transfer from the payor account to a payee account of a payee maintained at the payee financial institution, wherein the real-time credit transfer is settled through the real-time settlement network. 
 
   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the payee is a biller for services provided by the payee to the payor. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the request for the payor profile information is received at the payment-messaging system after the payor has registered to use the payment-messaging system. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the payor profile information is created in the directory when the payor registers for the payment-messaging system. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the routing transit number for the payor financial institution is stored in the payor profile information in the directory when the payor financial institution is enabled to send real-time payments through the real-time settlement network. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the public identifier of the payor comprises at least one of an email address of the payor, a phone number of the payor, a tokenized identifier of the account of the payor, or an account number proxy for the account of the payor. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the computing instructions, when executed on the one or more processors, are further configured to perform:
 receiving first data at the payment-messaging system from the real-time settlement network after the real-time settlement network receives the request for payment from the payee financial institution, wherein the first data comprises information about the request for payment; and   storing the first data at the payment-messaging system.   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the computing instructions, when executed on the one or more processors, are further configured to perform:
 sending a first acknowledgement from the payment-messaging system to the real-time settlement network after the payment-messaging system receives the first data.   
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the computing instructions, when executed on the one or more processors, are further configured to perform:
 receiving second data at the payment-messaging system from the real-time settlement network after the real-time settlement network receives the real-time credit transfer from the payor financial institution, wherein the second data comprises information about the real-time credit transfer; and   storing the second data at the payment-messaging system.   
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the computing instructions, when executed on the one or more processors, are further configured to perform:
 sending a second acknowledgement from the payment-messaging system to the real-time settlement network after the payment-messaging system receives the second data.   
     
     
         11 . A method being implemented via execution of computing instructions configured to run at one or more processors, the method comprising:
 receiving, at a payment-messaging system from a payee financial institution, a request for payor profile information, wherein the request comprises a public identifier of a payor;   determining, using a directory at the payment-messaging system, the payor profile information based on the request, wherein the payor profile information includes a routing transit number for a payor financial institution that maintains a payor account of the payor when the payor financial institution is enabled to send real-time payments through a real-time settlement network, and wherein the payor profile information does not include an account number of the payor account; and   sending, from the payment-messaging system to the payee financial institution, the payor profile information, to cause:
 the payee financial institution to determine whether the payor profile information includes the routing transit number for the payor financial institution; and 
 the payee financial institution, when the payor profile information includes the routing transit number for the payor financial institution, to send a request for payment through the real-time settlement network to the payor financial institution to allow the payor to authorize a real-time credit transfer from the payor account to a payee account of a payee maintained at the payee financial institution, wherein the real-time credit transfer is settled through the real-time settlement network. 
   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the payee is a biller for services provided by the payee to the payor. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the request for the payor profile information is received at the payment-messaging system after the payor has registered to use the payment-messaging system. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the payor profile information is created in the directory when the payor registers for the payment-messaging system. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the routing transit number for the payor financial institution is stored in the payor profile information in the directory when the payor financial institution is enabled to send real-time payments through the real-time settlement network. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the public identifier of the payor comprises at least one of an email address of the payor, a phone number of the payor, a tokenized identifier of the account of the payor, or an account number proxy for the account of the payor. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 11  further comprising:
 receiving first data at the payment-messaging system from the real-time settlement network after the real-time settlement network receives the request for payment from the payee financial institution, wherein the first data comprises information about the request for payment; and 
 storing the first data at the payment-messaging system. 
 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17  further comprising:
 sending a first acknowledgement from the payment-messaging system to the real-time settlement network after the payment-messaging system receives the first data. 
 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 11  further comprising:
 receiving second data at the payment-messaging system from the real-time settlement network after the real-time settlement network receives the real-time credit transfer from the payor financial institution, wherein the second data comprises information about the real-time credit transfer; and 
 storing the second data at the payment-messaging system. 
 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19  further comprising:
 sending a second acknowledgement from the payment-messaging system to the real-time settlement network after the payment-messaging system receives the second data.