Patent ID: 9613358
Date: 2017-04-04
CPC Classifications: G06Q

Claim:
1. An automated method, performed by a payment card system, for capturing a unique identifier for a merchant used in purchase transaction approval requests, the method comprising: providing a merchant interface via which a merchant is able to register with the payment card system, wherein the merchant enters a merchant name in the interface in registering; in response to a merchant initiating registration with the payment card system, associating a payment card number with the merchant and providing the payment card number to the merchant via the merchant interface with instructions for the merchant to perform a purchase transaction with the payment card number in order to capture a unique identifier of the merchant, wherein the payment card number includes an indicator that indicates to the payment card system that the payment card number is for the purpose of capturing a unique identifier of a merchant, wherein the unique identifier is a merchant's MID; receiving at the payment card system one or more requests for approval of payment card transactions, wherein each request includes a payment card number and a MID for a merchant; for each such request received, determining whether a respective payment card number associated with the request includes the indicator that indicates to the payment card system that the respective payment card number is for the purpose of capturing a MID for a merchant; in response to receiving a request, among the one or more requests for approval, having a payment card number that includes the indicator, automatically associating a MID accompanying the request with a merchant previously associated with the payment card number; in response to receiving a request, among one or more requests for approval, having a payment card number that does not include the indicator and having a MID that does not match a MID of a registered merchant, determining whether other merchant information accompanying the request matches information, including name and address information, previously stored in association with a registered merchant; in response to the other merchant information in the request matching information previously associated with a registered merchant, determining whether the matching information has been confirmed for the registered merchant a threshold number of times; in response to the matching information being confirmed the threshold number of times, approving the transaction request if there are sufficient funds or credit for the transaction for use with the matching registered merchant in an account of a payment card holder associated with the transaction, and sending a message to the matching registered merchant inquiring as to whether the merchant has changed its merchant processor or added a new merchant location; and in response to the matching information not being confirmed a threshold number of times, declining the transaction.