WO2008117212A1

WO2008117212A1 - Electronic commerce

Info

Publication number: WO2008117212A1
Application number: PCT/IB2008/051056
Authority: WO
Inventors: Barend Bartholomeus Joubert Coetzee; Roland Gerron Elferink
Original assignee: Iveri Payment Technologies (Proprietary) Limited
Priority date: 2007-03-23
Filing date: 2008-03-20
Publication date: 2008-10-02

Abstract

The invention relates to a method of and system for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant. In one embodiment, the method (200) includes providing a payment terminal (102) which includes a card reader (122) and which is remote from the merchant (1 12) and receiving by the payment terminal (102) a user input from the purchaser to request initialisation of the transaction. Thereafter, the method (200) includes sending a transaction message from the payment terminal (102) to the merchant (1 12) to initialise the transaction and receiving a configuration message from the merchant (1 12), the configuration message associating the card reader (102) with the merchant (1 12), thereby creating a virtual transaction channel (109) across a telecommunications network (104) between the merchant (1 12) and the payment terminal (102). The method (200) further includes reading a financial card of the purchaser with the card reader (122) and sending a financial message from the payment terminal (102) across the virtual transaction channel (109) to the merchant (1 12), the financial message including details read from the financial card.

Description

ELECTRONIC COMMERCE

THIS INVENTION relates to commerce, particularly to electronic commerce and also to a method of facilitating a transaction, a payment terminal and financial system therefor.

The Inventors are aware of a traditional method of purchasing goods or services, in which a purchaser is physically at the premises of a merchant. A merchant point-of-sale system includes a card reader to read (e.g. electronically or magnetically) a financial- or transaction card of the purchaser. Such transactions are normally referred to as Card Present (CP) transactions. CP transactions are relatively secure, but the purchaser, or at least the purchaser's financial card, must physically be present at the merchant's premises to complete the transaction.

The Inventors have noticed that electronic communication networks, such as the Internet, are increasingly being used for financial transactions. For example, a merchant system presents the purchaser with a remote user interface (e.g. a webpage) via which the purchaser can enter financial card details. Such details can then be authenticated with an issuer of the financial card. The financial card itself is thus not physically present at the premises of the merchant and such transactions are known as Card Not Present (CNP) transactions. It may be easy and convenient for a purchaser to conclude such CNP transactions, but, because the card needs not be physically present, the potential for fraud or card misuse is increased.

It is believed that the invention can alleviate the drawbacks associated with CNP transactions while maintaining the convenience of CP transactions.

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and the purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the method including: providing a payment terminal which includes a card reader and which is remote from the merchant; receiving by the payment terminal a user input from the purchaser to request initialisation of the transaction; sending a transaction message from the payment terminal to the merchant to initialise the transaction; receiving a configuration message from the merchant, the configuration message associating the card reader with the merchant, thereby creating a virtual transaction channel across a telecommunications network between the merchant and the payment terminal; reading a financial card of the purchaser with the card reader; sending a financial message from the payment terminal across the virtual transaction channel to the merchant, the financial message including details read from the financial card; and releasing the card reader once the transaction is concluded so that it is available to be associated with other merchants.

It will be appreciated that the method may in effect be similar to the purchaser being physically at a point-of-sale (POS) terminal of the merchant. In other words, the method allows a CP transaction to be conducted even though the purchaser is remote from the merchant.

In this regard, "transaction" may be understood to include a purchase and sale transaction between a merchant and a purchaser, for goods or services offered by a merchant.

"Merchant" in the context of this specification will be understood to include the entity which is selling the goods or services, or, if the context so implies, a computer terminal or system of the merchant.

It will be understood that the financial card may be a credit card, debit card, cheque card, or any like bank card.

Releasing the card reader may include receiving a release message and closing the virtual transaction channel such that the card reader is available to be associated with other merchants for different transactions with the same or different purchasers.

The method may include receiving by the payment terminal a PIN associated with the financial card.

The method may include receiving a status message indicating whether or not the transaction has been authorised.

The method may include encrypting sent messages and decrypting received messages.

The method may include the prior step of prompting the purchaser for transaction information. "Transaction information" in the context of the specification may include information required by a particular merchant to facilitate a transaction, e.g. description of the goods or services being purchased, personal information of a purchaser, or the like. The transaction information may include biometric identification data or a signature from the purchaser.

The invention extends to a method of facilitating a financial transaction between the merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the method including: receiving from a remote payment terminal a transaction message to request initialisation of a particular transaction; sending by the merchant a configuration message to the payment terminal, the configuration message associating a card reader of the payment terminal with the merchant, thereby creating a virtual transaction channel across a telecommunications network between the merchant and the payment terminal; receiving from the payment terminal a financial message including card details read from a financial card by the card reader of the payment terminal; communicating with a pre-existing acquirer of the financial card the card details thereby to authorise payment; and releasing the card reader once the transaction is concluded so that it is available to be associated with other merchants. The financial message may include a PIN associated with the financial card.

The method may include receiving a response message from the acquirer indicating whether or not an issuer of the financial card has authorised payment. The method may include making use of the existing acquirer/issuer paradigm, as is conventionally used for authenticating transactions.

The method may include sending a status message to the payment terminal indicating whether or not the transaction has been authorised.

Releasing the payment terminal may include sending a release message and closing the virtual transaction channel such that the card reader is available to be associated with other merchants for different transactions with the same or different purchasers.

The method may be offered as a user-selectable payment option for goods and/or services tendered by a particular merchant, e.g. via a web site on the Internet.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a payment terminal for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the payment terminal including: a user interface operable to receive from the purchaser a user input requesting initialisation of the transaction; a card reader operable to read a financial card of the purchaser; a communication interface via which messages can be sent and received across a telecommunications network to and from the merchant; and a purchaser configuration module operable to: send a transaction message to the merchant indicative of the transaction; receive a configuration message from the merchant and thereafter to associate the card reader with the merchant in accordance with the configuration message, thereby creating a virtual transaction channel across a telecommunications network between the merchant and the payment terminal; send a financial message across the virtual transaction channel to the merchant, the financial message including details read from the financial card; and release the payment terminal once the transaction is concluded so that it is available to be associated with other merchants.

The payment terminal may include a computer system which is operatively connected or connectable to the card reader and which embodies the purchaser configuration module.

The purchaser configuration module may be operable to receive a release message thereby to release the payment terminal and close the virtual transaction channel such that the payment terminal is available to be associated with other merchants for different transactions with the same or different purchasers.

The user interface may be operable to prompt for and receive a PIN associated with the financial card and the purchaser configuration module is operable thereafter to include the PIN in the financial message.

The purchaser configuration module may be operable to receive a status message indicative of whether or not the transaction has been authorised.

A merchant system for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the merchant system including: a communication arrangement via which messages can be sent or received across a telecommunications network to and from, on the one hand, the payment terminal and, on the other hand, a financial card acquirer; a merchant configuration module operable to: receive from the remote payment terminal a transaction message to request initialisation of a particular transaction; send a configuration message to the payment terminal, the configuration message being operable to associate the payment terminal with the merchant, thereby creating a virtual transaction channel across the telecommunications network between the merchant and the payment terminal; and receive from the payment terminal a financial message including card details read from a financial card by a card reader of the payment terminal; and an authorisation module operable to communicate the card details to the acquirer thereby to authorise payment; the merchant configuration module further being operable to release the payment terminal once the transaction is concluded so that it is available to be associated with other merchants.

The financial message may include a PIN associated with the financial card.

The merchant configuration module may be operable to send a status message to the payment terminal indicating whether or not the transaction has been authorised.

The merchant configuration module may be operable to send a release message to the payment terminal thereby to release the payment terminal and close the virtual transaction channel such that the card reader is available to be associated with other merchants for different transactions with the same or different purchasers.

The invention extends further to a financial system for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the financial system including: a payment terminal as defined above; and a merchant system as defined above.

The inventions extends yet further to a machine-readable medium embodying instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a method as defined above. The invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings.

In the drawings: Figure 1 shows a schematic view of a system for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 shows a schematic view of a payment terminal of Figure 1 ; Figure 3 shows a schematic view of a merchant of Figure 1 ; Figure 4 shows a flow diagram of methods for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, in accordance with the invention; and

Figure 5 shows a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the example form of a computer system within which a set of instructions, for causing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, may be executed.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, a system for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, in accordance with the invention, is generally indicated by reference numeral 100.

The system 100 includes a payment terminal 102 which, in turn, includes a computer system 120 and a card reader 122. For ease of illustration, only one payment terminal 102 is illustrated, but it is to be appreciated that there may be a plurality of such terminals. The payment terminal 102 is illustrated in more detail in

Figure 2 and is connected or connectable to a telecommunications network 104.

In this particular embodiment of the invention, the telecommunications network 104 is a packet-switched communications network, in particular, the Internet, such that transactions are electronic, optionally web-based, transactions. Instead, in another embodiment, the telecommunications network may be a cellular telecommunications network, telephony network, or the like. The system 100 further includes a merchant 1 12 at a location remote from the payment terminal 102. For example, the payment terminal 102 may be in an Internet cafe, a home of the purchaser, post office, or the like, whereas the merchant 1 12 may be at their physical business premises, or the merchant 1 12 may not even have a physical premises, but a virtual presence on the Internet 104 instead. The merchant 1 12 is operable to communicate over the Internet 104 with the payment terminal 102. It is to be appreciated that in this particular embodiment of the invention, the merchant 1 12 offers goods and services, in exchange for payment, over the Internet. It is to be further appreciated that the merchant 1 12 includes a computer system, as illustrated in more detail in Figure 3, to facilitate transactions over the Internet 104. Again, one merchant 1 12 is shown for ease of illustration, but there may be a plurality of potential merchants.

Also connected to the telecommunications network 104 is an acquirer 1 14. The acquirer 1 14, in conventional card processing fashion, is the financial institution or other organisation that provides card processing services to the merchant 1 12. The process or authorising payment in terms of the transaction may include input from other entities such as a card association (e.g. MasterCard, Visa, or the like) and an issuer (the particular bank or financial institution where the financial card is held). The particular acquirer/issuer model is well-known in the financial field and will therefore not be described in further detail. In this example, the merchant 1 12 is in communication via the telecommunications network 104 with the acquirer 1 14 thereby to authorise payment from the issuer of a financial card to the merchant 1 12.

Referring to Figure 2 of the drawings, the payment terminal 102 is shown in more detail to include a plurality of functional components. It is to be appreciated that the functional components may be consolidated into one device or distributed among a plurality of devices. In this example, as mentioned above, the payment terminal 102 includes a computer system 120 operatively connected to a card reader 122.

The computer system 120 includes a processor 123 which, in turn, includes a purchaser configuration module 130 which is a conceptual module corresponding to a functional task performed by the processor 123. To this end, the payment terminal 102 includes a machine-readable medium 126, e.g. main memory, a hard disk drive, or the like, which carries thereon a set of instructions to direct the operation of the payment terminal 102 or the processor 123, for example being in the form of a computer program. It is to be understood that the processor 123 may be one or more microprocessors, controllers, or any other suitable computing device, resource, hardware, software, or embedded logic. Furthermore, the computer system 120 and the card reader 122 may include separate processors 123. Also, the software may be in the form of code embodying a web browser. The computer system 120 further includes a communication interface 124 for electronic communication with the Internet 104. The communication interface 124 may be in the form of a network card, a modem, or the like.

The purchaser configuration module 130 is operable to compile and send and to receive and act on various messages, via the communication interface 124, to and from the merchant 1 12 and to associate the payment terminal 102, or at least the card reader 122, with the merchant 1 12, by creating a virtual transaction channel 109 (see Figure 1 ) across the Internet 104. The virtual transaction channel 109 is a secure, encrypted channel for the communication of sensitive financial information between the payment terminal 102 and the merchant 1 12.

Also, although not illustrated, the computer system 120 includes a user interface including at least a display (e.g. a computer screen) and an input device (e.g. a mouse and keyboard). The card reader 122 itself also includes a keypad forming part of the user interface. The user interface is operable to display prompts and transaction information and to receive a user input from the purchaser. More particularly, the user interface includes a web browser which is operable to display a web page hosted by the merchant 1 12.

The card reader 122 is operable to read financial information from a financial card. The card reader 122 may be a conventional device connected to the computer system 122 for the payment terminal 102. In any event, the card reader includes a magnetic reader operable to read a magnetic stripe present on some financial cards, and/or an electronic reader operable to read a smart chip embedded in some financial cards. Some financial cards (e.g. debit cards) also require entry of a PIN to authorise payment. Referring now to Figure 3, the merchant 1 12 is shown in more detail. In similar fashion to the computer system 120 of the payment terminal, the merchant 1 12 includes a processor 150, a communication interface 156 and a machine-readable medium 158. The processor includes a merchant configuration module 152 (functionally similar to the purchaser configuration module 130) and a conventional authorisation module 154 to communicate with the acquirer 1 14 thereby to authorise payment during a transaction.

An example embodiment of the invention will now be further described in use, with reference to the flow diagram of Figure 4. The flow diagram illustrates two methods 200, 300. The method 200 is performed on the side of the payment terminal 102 while the method 300 is performed on the side of the merchant 1 12. It is to be appreciated that these methods 200, 300 are performed remotely from each other but are shown in a single Figure to illustrate their interaction. Arrows between methods 200, 300 do not illustrate a branch or split of a particular method 200, 300, but merely indicate the flow of messages between payment terminal 102 and merchant 1 12.

Further, for ease of reference, the methods 200, 300 are described with reference to Figures 1 to 3, although it is to be appreciated that the methods 200, 300 could find application in other systems while the system 100 could be configured to perform other methods.

The remote payment terminal 102 is provided, at block 202, for use by a purchaser. In this example, the payment terminal 102 is publicly accessible, for example being provided in an Internet cafe. The purchaser surfs the Internet from the computer system 120 and accesses a commerce web site provided by the merchant

1 12. The purchaser shops online, using the website, which initially is similar to conventional commerce web sites. The purchaser enters, in conventional fashion, a description of the products or services to purchase as well as details, if necessary, of the purchaser. The purchaser then selects a payment option. The may be a plurality of conventional payment options, but at least one option includes use of the card reader

122 in accordance with the invention. Accordingly, the payment terminal 102 receives, at block 204, a user input indicating that the purchaser wishes to use the card reader 122, in other words, wishes to perform a CP transaction even though the purchase is across the Internet 104 and the merchant 1 12 is remote.

The purchaser configuration module 130 sends, at block 206, a transaction message to the merchant 1 12, the transaction message indicating that the card reader 122 is to be used. Correspondingly, the merchant 1 12 receives, at block 302, the transaction message. The merchant configuration module 152 compiles and sends, at block 304, a configuration message to the payment terminal 102. The configuration message includes a code or command which directs how the card reader 122 will interact with the purchaser. The payment terminal 102 receives, at block 208, the configuration message. Under the direction of the configuration message, the card reader 122 of the payment terminal 102 becomes uniquely associated, at blocks 210, 306, with the merchant 1 12 and a secure virtual transaction channel 109 is created across the Internet 104 between the payment terminal 102 and the merchant 1 12. Thus, although the merchant 1 12 and the card reader 122 are remote, they are now configured to act in a fashion similar to card readers in point-of-sale devices at premises of merchants.

The purchaser is then instructed to swipe (in the case of a magnetic stripe card) or insert (in the case of a smartcard) his/her financial card in a card slot provided by the card reader 122 which, in turn, reads, at block 212, the financial information from the financial card. If appropriate (e.g. in the case of a debit card), the purchaser is also prompted to enter a PIN in the keypad of the card reader 122 which then receives, at block 213, the PIN. Thus, the purchaser is prompted to interact with the card reader as though he/she was physically at a point of sale terminal at premises of the merchant 1 12. The card reader 122 automatically encrypts financial information (including the PIN if received) read from the card.

The payment terminal 102 may further encrypt (e.g. secondary or channel encryption) the financial information and the purchaser configuration module 130 compiles and sends, at block 214, a financial message, including the financial information, across the virtual transaction channel 109. The merchant 1 12 receives, at block 308, the financial message and decrypts it. Standard encryption algorithms can be used. In other words, the merchant 1 12 receives the financial information of a financial card from the card itself, as though the card had been inserted in a point of sale terminal physically at the premises of the merchant 1 12.

The merchant 1 12 then sends, at block 310, an authorisation message to the acquirer 1 14, in conventional fashion, to authorise payment. The acquirer 1 14 is oblivious as to the fact that the purchaser is remote from the merchant 1 12, therefore allowing the use of the existing acquirer/issuer paradigm.

Payment is authorised, at block 350, in conventional fashion. The merchant 1 12 then receives, at block 312, from the acquirer 1 14 a response message indicative of whether payment has been authorised or declined. Thus, no extra messages or communications (e.g. containing a secondary transaction number) need be received from the acquirer 1 14. If the payment was indeed authorised, at block 314, the transaction is conducted, at block 316. The merchant 1 12 compiles and sends, at block 318, a status message indicative of whether or not the transaction has been successful and the status message is received, at block 216, by the payment terminal 102. The result of the transaction is displayed on the display of the payment terminal 102.

The merchant 1 12 then compiles and sends, at block 320, a release message which is received, at block 218, by the payment terminal 102. In accordance with the release message, the card reader 122 is released, at block 220, 322, so that it is no longer associated with the merchant 1 12 and the virtual transaction channel 109 is closed. In another embodiment, the card reader 102 could be released automatically without explicitly sending a release message.

The payment terminal 102 is then available for further transactions by the same or different purchases with the same or different merchants. In such case, a new virtual transaction channel would be formed between the payment terminal 102 and the new merchant. Referring now to Figure 5 of the drawings, a diagrammatic representation of a machine is shown in the example form of a computer system 400 within which a set of instructions, for causing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, may be executed. In alternative embodiments, the machine operates as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or a client machine in a server-client network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The machine may be a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term "machine" shall also be taken to include any collection of machines that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

The example computer system 400 includes a processor 402 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU) or both), a main memory 404 and a static memory 406, which communicate with each other via a bus 408. The computer system 400 may further include a video display unit 410 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system 400 also includes an alphanumeric input device 412 (e.g., a keyboard), a user interface (Ul) navigation device 414 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive unit 416, a signal generation device 418 (e.g., a speaker) and a network interface device 420.

The disk drive unit 416 includes a machine-readable medium 422 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions and data structures (e.g., software 424) embodying or utilised by any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. The software 424 may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory 404 and/or within the processor 402 during execution thereof by the computer system 400, the main memory 404 and the processor 402 also constituting machine-readable media. The software 424 may further be transmitted or received over a network 426 via the network interface device 420 utilising any one of a number of well-known transfer protocols (e.g., HTTP).

While the machine-readable medium 422 is shown in an example embodiment to be a single medium, the term "machine-readable medium" should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralised or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term "machine-readable medium" shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the example embodiments, or that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying data structures utilised by or associated with such a set of instructions. The term "machine-readable medium" shall accordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, optical and magnetic media, and carrier wave signals.

The payment terminal 102 and/or the merchant 1 12 as described above may be in the form of the machine 400 or may at least include some of the components thereof.

The Applicant believes that the method of facilitating an electronic transaction as exemplified will alleviate at least some of the problems currently associated with conducting Internet or telephone transactions, particularly the problem of fraud. Internet transactions can now be conducted in the form of CP transactions as if the purchaser was actually at the premises of the merchant. Also, members of the public who do not have credit cards can now use their debit cards for transactions with merchants which previously could offer credit cards but not debit cards as payment options.

Also, the invention is attractive to merchants as it can not only increase custom but, because requirements for CNP transactions may be more onerous and carry greater bank charges for merchants than CP transactions, the merchants could decrease their risk and increase their profit margins.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1 . A method of facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the method including: providing a payment terminal which includes a card reader and which is remote from the merchant; receiving by the payment terminal a user input from the purchaser to request initialisation of the transaction; sending a transaction message from the payment terminal to the merchant to initialise the transaction; receiving a configuration message from the merchant, the configuration message associating the card reader with the merchant, thereby creating a virtual transaction channel across a telecommunications network between the merchant and the payment terminal; reading a financial card of the purchaser with the card reader; sending a financial message from the payment terminal across the virtual transaction channel to the merchant, the financial message including details read from the financial card; and releasing the card reader once the transaction is concluded so that it is available to be associated with other merchants.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1 , in which releasing the card reader includes receiving a release message and closing the virtual transaction channel such that the card reader is available to be associated with other merchants for different transactions with the same or different purchasers.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 or 2, which includes receiving by the payment terminal a PIN associated with the financial card.

4. A method as claimed in any preceding claim, which includes receiving a status message indicating whether or not the transaction has been authorised.

5. A method as claimed in any preceding claim, which includes encrypting sent messages and decrypting received messages.

6. A method of facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the method including: receiving from a remote payment terminal a transaction message to request initialisation of a particular transaction; sending by the merchant a configuration message to the payment terminal, the configuration message associating a card reader of the payment terminal with the merchant, thereby creating a virtual transaction channel across a telecommunications network between the merchant and the payment terminal; receiving from the payment terminal a financial message including card details read from a financial card by a card reader of the payment terminal; communicating with a pre-existing acquirer of the financial card the card details thereby to authorise payment; and releasing the card reader once the transaction is concluded so that it is available to be associated with other merchants.

7. A method as claimed in claim 6, in which the financial message includes a PIN associated with the financial card.

8. A method as claimed in claim 6 or 7, which includes receiving a response message from the acquirer indicating whether or not an issuer of the financial card has authorised payment.

9. A method as claimed in any of claims 6 to 8 inclusive, which includes sending a status message to the payment terminal indicating whether or not the transaction has been authorised.

10. A method as claimed in any of claims 6 to 9 inclusive, in which releasing the card reader includes sending a release message and closing the virtual transaction channel such that the card reader is available to be associated with other merchants for different transactions with the same or different purchasers.

1 1 . A method as claimed in any of claims 6 to 10 inclusive, which includes encrypting sent messages and decrypting received messages.

12. A payment terminal for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the payment terminal including: a user interface operable to receive from the purchaser a user input requesting initialisation of the transaction; a card reader operable to read a financial card of the purchaser; a communication interface via which messages can be sent and received across a telecommunications network to and from the merchant; and a purchaser configuration module operable to: send a transaction message to the merchant indicative of the transaction; receive a configuration message from the merchant and thereafter to associate the card reader with the merchant in accordance with the configuration message, thereby creating a virtual transaction channel across a telecommunications network between the merchant and the payment terminal; send a financial message across the virtual transaction channel to the merchant, the financial message including details read from the financial card; and release the card reader once the transaction is concluded so that it is available to be associated with other merchants.

13. A payment terminal as claimed in claim 12, which includes a computer system which is operatively connected or connectable to the card reader and which embodies the purchaser configuration module.

14. A payment terminal as claimed in claim 12 or 13, in which the purchaser configuration module is operable to receive a release message thereby to release the card reader and close the virtual transaction channel such that the card reader is available to be associated with other merchants for different transactions with the same or different purchasers.

15. A payment terminal as claimed in any of claims 12 to 14 inclusive, in which the user interface is operable to prompt for and receive a PIN associated with the financial card and the purchaser configuration module is operable thereafter to include the PIN in the financial message.

16. A payment terminal as claimed in any of claims 12 to 15 inclusive, in which the purchaser configuration module is operable to receive a status message indicative of whether or not the transaction has been authorised.

17. A merchant system for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the merchant system including: a communication arrangement via which messages can be sent or received across a telecommunications network to and from, on the one hand, the payment terminal and, on the other hand, a financial card acquirer; a merchant configuration module operable to: receive from the remote payment terminal a transaction message to request initialisation of a particular transaction; send a configuration message to the payment terminal, the configuration message being operable to associate a card reader of the payment terminal with the merchant, thereby creating a virtual transaction channel across the telecommunications network between the merchant and the payment terminal; and receive from the payment terminal a financial message including card details read from a financial card by the card reader of the payment terminal; and an authorisation module operable to communicate the card details to the acquirer thereby to authorise payment; the merchant configuration module further being operable to release the payment terminal once the transaction is concluded so that it is available to be associated with other merchants.

18. A merchant system as claimed in claim 17, in which the financial message includes a PIN associated with the financial card.

19. A merchant system as claimed in claim 17 or 18, in which the merchant configuration module is operable to send a status message to the payment terminal indicating whether or not the transaction has been authorised.

20. A merchant system as claimed in any of claims 17 to 19 inclusive, in which the merchant configuration module is operable to send a release message to the card reader thereby to release the card reader and close the virtual transaction channel such that the card reader is available to be associated with other merchants for different transactions with the same or different purchasers.

21 . A financial system for facilitating a financial transaction between a merchant and a purchaser at a location remote from the merchant, the financial system including: a payment terminal as claimed in any of claims 12 to 16 inclusive; and a merchant system as claimed in any of claims 17 to 20 inclusive.

22. A machine-readable medium embodying instructions which, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform a method as claimed in any of claims 1 to 1 1 inclusive.