Methods, Apparatus and Computer Program Products for Interfacing Automatic Bill Payment Systems with Card Issuer Database Systems

A decisioning apparatus for integrating a merchant processor with a card issuer database, comprising:

• a merchant logic unit configured to store a merchant profile including transaction request data elements in a global merchant database, and to transmit to a merchant system a first request for data corresponding to at least one element of the merchant profile;
• a cardmember database logic unit configured to transmit to a cardmember account database a second request for data corresponding to at least one element of the merchant profile;
• the merchant logic unit and the cardmember database are further configured to receive data corresponding to the merchant profile from the merchant system and the cardmember database, and store the data in the global merchant database;
• and
• a marketing logic unit configured to notify a marketing system that at least one record associated with the merchant profile is stored in the global merchant database.

A computer-readable medium having stored thereon sequences of instructions, the sequences of instructions including instructions which when executed by a computer system causes the computer system to perform:

• storing a merchant profile including transaction request data elements in a global merchant database;
• transmitting a request for data corresponding to at least one element of the merchant profile to at least one of a merchant system and a cardmember database;
• receiving data corresponding to the merchant profile from at least one of the merchant system and the cardmember database, and storing the data in the global merchant database;
• and
• notifying a marketing system that at least one record associated with the merchant profile is stored in the global merchant database.