Patent ID: 7252223

Claim:
A system for electronic exchange between stored value accounts, the system comprising: (a) a first network for electronically transferring values to and from stored value accounts; (b) a second network for electronically transferring values to and from stored value accounts; (c) a service provider including: (1) means for maintaining accounts on both networks for each customer; (2) means for transferring values between an account on the first network and an account on the second network; (3) means for directly transferring values between two accounts on the second network; (4) means for indirectly transferring values between two accounts on the first network, wherein said transfer occurs via at least one account on the second network that is owned in common with one of said accounts on the first network; (d) means for receiving a request to transfer value between a first account and a second account; (e) means for calculating an optimal exchange path that minimizes transaction costs for the transfer in part (d), wherein said optimal exchange path can include multiple inter-network and intra-network transfers through intermediate accounts; (f) means for executing the transfer request in part (d) from the first account to the second account according to an optimized exchange path; (g) wherein the service provider includes business permissions from both the first network and second network to perform inter-network value transfers on behalf of customers; and (h) wherein the service provider includes customer permissions that automatically authorize transfers across intermediate accounts in the optimal exchange path calculated in part (e).