Patent ID: 8352340

Claim:
A computer implemented method for exercising employee stock option provided by a company, comprising: receiving notice of an employee intent to exercise an employee stock option having an option price; establishing a company escrow account and a third party escrow account in a database; transferring, by a server computer, property equivalent to a third party purchase price to the third party escrow account; transferring, by the server computer, the securities to satisfy the employee stock option to the company escrow account; exercising the employee stock option by the server computer, wherein exercising includes transferring the property equivalent to the option price of the employee stock option from the third party escrow account to the company and the securities to satisfy the employee stock option from the company escrow account to the third party; and transferring, by the server computer, net proceeds from the exercise of the employee stock option from the third party escrow account to the employee; wherein the third party purchase price is an anticipated purchase price-based at least in part on a market price for the securities at the time of transfer, the anticipated purchase price including an additional amount to account for fluctuations in the market price.