Patent ID: 7720755

Claim:
A system for issuing prepaid negotiable instruments to an account holder, comprising: a database for storing, in relation to a prepaid account of the account holder, an account identifier and a balance associated with the prepaid account, wherein the balance represents funds deposited to the prepaid account as advance payment for negotiable instruments, wherein withdrawals against the prepaid account are made only by issuance of negotiable instruments, and wherein the prepaid account is maintained by a non-banking institution and the prepaid account is thus not an FDIC insured account; a transaction terminal for issuing negotiable instruments, the terminal including a card reader for reading a card having data thereon representing the account identifier, an input device for entering the amount of the negotiable instrument, and a printer for printing the amount on the negotiable instrument; a server system in communication with the database and the transaction terminal, the server system receiving the account identifier in response to the card being read at the transaction terminal, accessing the database to determine the balance within the prepaid account associated with the account identifier, authorizing a negotiable instrument to be issued at the terminal if there is a sufficient balance within the account to cover the amount of the instrument, and debiting the prepaid account by the amount of the issued negotiable instrument; and a communication link connecting the server system for receiving data from a banking institution, the data relating to a bank account maintained by the banking institution for the benefit of the account holder, for receiving deposits for the account holder and immediately and automatically crediting those deposits to the prepaid account for the benefit of the account holder; wherein the account holder is a cash-based consumer not having a relationship with a banking institution, wherein funds are deposited for the benefit of the account holder into the bank account, wherein those funds are then immediately swept into the prepaid account, and wherein the funds are accessed by the account holder only through the issuance of prepared negotiable instruments.