System and method for enabling financial transactions

A financial transaction system for enabling financial transactions between parties using a facilitator, including:

• a governing host having a database for registering parties wishing to perform a financial transaction and for ultimately processing the financial transaction;
• a discrete point-of-sale terminal independently accessible by one party wishing to initiate a financial transaction with another party and for communicating with the governing host to process the transaction, the discrete point-of-sale terminal having a local transaction process providing for the initial validating and enforcing of business rules governing the transaction with the one party and to generate a transaction key confirming that the transaction is authorised on validating the transaction with the governing host;
• a facilitator device for completing the business transaction at a facilitator point-of-sale terminal, the facilitator device having a reader to read the transaction key on being supplied with same from the one party and communicating with the governing host to complete the transaction using the facilitator point-of-sale terminal;
• wherein the discrete point-of-sale terminal is located separately and can be accessed and operated independently by the one party, offline of any point-of-sale activity involving the facilitator point-of-sale terminal and the facilitator device;
• and wherein the facilitator device instructs an operator of the facilitator point-of-sale terminal on any steps that may be required to complete a transaction in a manner that complies with the rules of a regulator of the provision of the financial transaction as well as the business rules of the other party and instructs the one party of any further steps that must be taken to validate the transaction.