Question:
Hello, I am an eBay seller, located in Australia. I sell on ebay.com, not ebay.com.au, 90%+ of my customers come from the USA, for the majority of my transactions I use Paypal. Paypal is the most convenient way for me to accept payments at the moment; however I have a problem with the Paypal service. Paypal exchange rates are substantially lower than actually exchange rates. Paypal forces Australian sellers to: -First convert Paypal funds from US dollars into AUS dollars before transfer to Australian banks. -Paypal will not transfer funds in US dollars to my bank in Australia and allow my bank to perform the conversion. -Also Paypal will not let me deposit US funds into a bank located in Australia which is denominated in US dollars. Here is an example of the discrepancy between Paypal currency conversions and other reputable conversions (I have used the figure of $US232.50 simply because I had an auction end for this amount recently, calculation based on exchange rates as at 08:46 AM 07 Mar 2003). Ebay.com.au: US $232.50 = AU $378.70 XE.com: US $232.50 = AU $379.22 Westpac banking corporation Australia: US $232.50 = AU $381.59 Paypal: US $232.50 = AU $364.95 On the Paypal site you could previously go to the FAQ’s questions section and they offered an explanation for the difference between Paypal’s exchange rates and actual exchange rates, they stated that the exchange rates you saw reported on the news or on online conversions sites was for conversions of large sums of money, i.e. $US10,000 and over. This was a blatant falsehood, and has since disappeared from their site. There was an increase in Paypal exchange rates when eBay took over the Paypal company, however there is still quite a large difference between the exchange rates displayed by the non-US eBay sites. (To see eBay’s approximate exchange rates simply search for items listed in US dollars on eBay Australia, UK, Japan or any other non-US eBay, and the conversions are displayed underneath the item prices). When I was informed that eBay was acquiring Paypal, I thought that Paypal exchange rates might be adjusted so as to be consistent with the conversions provided by eBay. However, this did not happen. In an attempt to circumvent these "low" conversion rates I have attempted to set up a US bank account, however, all of the banks I have approached will allow a non-US citizen to set up an account if they present at the branch in person but not if they attempt to open the account over the phone. I was wondering if anyone else had any suggestions concerning this matter? And if anyone knows if Paypal are acting illegally by effectively taking additional fees from international customers through this underhanded reduction in exchange rates? Also, do sellers from the UK, Japan, and Europe experience the same problem as me? I know Paypal have introduced a mechanism for accepting payments in non-US dollars, I was wondering if this has helped anyone circumvent the problems I have listed in this post? Thanks, Luke.
Response:
don’t use paypal then. simple. set up your own system for accepting credit cards. david — http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/derbarbier/ (ebay sales) http://tinyurl.com/6xy (half.com sales) stickneedlesinme at mindspring dot com
the matter is not that simple. there is a legal question mark over paypal’s self-determination of interntaional exchange rates. furthermore, paypal has over 20million non-US users, parse this newgroup for recent complaints from canadians with the same problem as i have described. the policy i have described above places users from outside the USA at a significant disadvantage. you should also note that difference between eBay’s conversion rates, and paypal’s conversion rates. this is highly significant as paypal has now been aquired by eBay.
Response:
the matter is not that simple. there is a legal question mark over paypal’s self-determination of interntaional exchange rates.
Why? Hotels around the world give lousy exchange rates to naive and lazy tourists all the time. I don’t use Paypal, and a recent Ebay seller lost some good money, an extra 20%, because they insisted on accepting Paypal only, but everyone is free to set exchange rates to what ever the market will bear. Happy Trails Johpa
Response:
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – words: don’t use paypal then. simple. the matter is not that simple. actually, the matter is that simple. it is black and white. don’t use paypal, and you won’t have these problems. i hate to be blunt, but….aw, hell, who’m i kidding!? i love being blunt! david — http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/derbarbier/ (ebay sales) http://tinyurl.com/6xy (half.com sales) stickneedlesinme at mindspring dot com
you are naive, and i can not be arsed deconstructing your weak point. dont post on the thread again unless you have something of value to say.
Response:
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – words: words: don’t use paypal then. simple. the matter is not that simple. actually, the matter is that simple. it is black and white. don’t use paypal, and you won’t have these problems. i hate to be blunt, but….aw, hell, who’m i kidding!? i love being blunt! you are naive, and i can not be arsed deconstructing your weak point. dont post on the thread again unless you have something of value to say. yeah, like i’m gonna take commands from you, Rubber Queen. if you don’t like the way paypal bends you over, don’t use it. david — http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/derbarbier/ (ebay sales) http://tinyurl.com/6xy (half.com sales) stickneedlesinme at mindspring dot com
1. I am unfamiliar with the term "rubber queen". 2. I assume it has some kind of homosexual connotations, based on your second remark: "paypal bends you over". If I am correct, I find it highly amusing. One only needs to click this link: http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/derbarbier/ (that’s you by the way). To see what I would refer to an "aging queen". You need to grow up, take the red hair dye out of your hair, and grow a jaw.
Response:
words: <snip you are naive, and i can not be arsed deconstructing your weak point. dont post on the thread again unless you have something of value to say. if you have to "deconstruct" my weak point, then you’re an idiot.
Deconstructing a weak point is not a pre-requisite for being an idiot. And no I don’t have to deconstruct yours, as I said; I can not be arsed (that means "bothered". do you have trouble ‘deconstructing’ weak points in general, or just mine?
No, none of the above. I made my original post in order that someone would point me in the direction of a USA bank which allows non-US citizens to open an account, and a number of kind people have done this. I didn’t make my post to provide you with a forum to respond to one of your betters (me) in a sarcastic manner. You are unfamiliar with the problem domain, lack knowledge concerning international banking and finance laws, the intricacies of the International Papal issue, and furthermore lack tact. I will not be drawn into your diatribe any further, goodbye jawless one. Luke Rev. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – david — http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/derbarbier/ (ebay sales) http://tinyurl.com/6xy (half.com sales) stickneedlesinme at mindspring dot com
Response:
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – alt.marketing.online.ebay… words: don’t use paypal then. simple. the matter is not that simple. actually, the matter is that simple. it is black and white. don’t use paypal, and you won’t have these problems. i hate to be blunt, but….aw, hell, who’m i kidding!? i love being blunt! you are naive, and i can not be arsed deconstructing your weak point. dont post on the thread again unless you have something of value to say. Or you’ll do what? This is Usenet, and anyone can comment on any post.
I will tease him. The golden rule of commerce is in effect: "He who has the gold makes the rules."
I don’t think that is the golden rule of commerce, and if it is that simple let’s see your macroeconomic model to prove it?
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