Patent ID: 7721960

Claim:
An inventory management system that manages financial transaction instruments, the system comprising: an issuer system; and communication means for enabling the issuer system to communicate with a distributor system, wherein the issuer system includes a processor programmed to: provide an interface accessible by the distributor system of a distributor that has received a group of financial transaction instruments, receive, from the distributor system via the interface, information related to a retail distribution of a first financial transaction instrument of the group, and update an inventory management database to identify a location of a remainder of the financial transaction instruments of the group after the first financial transaction instrument is distributed, the processor updating the location of the remainder of the financial transaction instruments of the group based on the received information related to the retail distribution of the first financial transaction instrument of the group, and wherein the information received from the distributor system via the interface includes information of at least one of: a physical financial transaction instrument and a non-physical financial transaction instrument.