Patent ID: 8229817

Claim:
A data processing system to enable the formulation of multi-party investment contracts, the system comprising: input means for allowing an ordering party to input contract data relating to a least one phenomenon, each said phenomenon having a range of future outcomes and a future time of maturity, the contract data including a set of probabilities of occurrence for each outcome in said range and a consideration due to a counterparty at or after the time of matching, and further by which at least one counterparty can input registering data including a set of probabilities of occurrence for each outcome in said range; and a processor configured to price and match a contract for a said phenomenon from said contract data and said registering data, wherein said processor configured to price said contract by: applying at least one template of entitlement as a function of outcome to each counterparty's set of probabilities to give one or more individual counterparty prices each equal to the ordering party's consideration; and applying the ordering party set of probabilities to each said template to derive an implied entitlement; wherein said processor is configured to match said contract by: determining which counterparty will provide the best entitlement on maturity by comparing each implied entitlement with the consideration; and wherein said processor is configured to match the contract with that counterparty having the template for the best said comparison.