Ina Steiner EcommerceBytes Blog
News and insight focusing on ecommerce.
by Ina Steiner, Editor of EcommerceBytes.com
Wed Jan 25 2023 20:58:42

eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

By: Ina Steiner

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Is eBay blackballing Bank of America bank accounts in the state of Georgia? According to a knowledgeable third-party eBay developer, it seems so.

Since eBay took over payment processing from PayPal, it requires all sellers to verify their bank account information so it can disburse funds into their accounts. But some sellers have had difficulty with the verification process - meaning they are unable to receive payouts for sales they've made and shipped.

This week, a frequent poster on the eBay boards who goes by the handle Shipscript said that for the past year, "eBay has been rejecting the BofA routing number for accounts in Georgia and telling sellers to use another bank."

An eBay Community volunteer since 2003, Shipscript speaks with authority, though they didn't provide much context about how they learned the problem was isolated to a single state. But they did provide further advice - "Customer service is able to help with the more basic issues. They may have to escalate more difficult questions to a supervisor," along with providing a link.

The discussion began when a seller said they could not get eBay to verify their Bank of America account, and another seller echoed the complaint.

Sure enough, the second seller said they were located in Georgia and finally got information from eBay customer service reps - but it wasn't good news. eBay reps told the seller eBay could not link Bank of America, Chase & Wells Fargo accounts to sellers' accounts if they were located in Georgia.

In a nutshell, the seller said, eBay randomly blocks Bank in individual states, without notifying sellers; eBay does not share this information openly; eBay will not supply a list of "Blocked" banks; and eBay insists if sellers want their funds, they must provide acceptable bank account details that are supported by eBay, even though you do not know eBay, banks are supported or not supported.

The seller said they must find another bank that offered free checking, with no minimum balances, that would be acceptable to eBay.

The question is not just why eBay blackballs certain banks for sellers in certain states. It's also why eBay hides the information from sellers.

This is not the only weird thing happening with eBay and people in the good State of Georgia - a seller recently reported that eBay charged them an international fee for a domestic package they sent to a customer located in Macon, Georgia.



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Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

by: Hobbiton This user has validated their user name.

Thu Jan 26 00:02:23 2023

I suspect that eBay has trouble distinguishing between the State of Georgia and the Country of Georgia. Much like some USA retailers have trouble distinguishing between New Mexico (the State) and (Old) Mexico (the country just south of NM).  
I blame the sorry state of the USA educational system...

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

by: Gumball This user has validated their user name.

Thu Jan 26 00:04:11 2023

I have not heard of this happening to other venues, but I imagine the Federal Government is the one to contact with this problem. As they have the final say on venures and banking. Paypal never had this problem.  

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

This user has validated their user name. by: Rexford

Thu Jan 26 05:54:18 2023

"I suspect that eBay has trouble distinguishing between the State of Georgia and the Country of Georgia."

If this were the case it would probably affect all of the banks in Georgia which it isn't.  My guess is that the affected banks aren't on eBay's "list of approved banks" in Georgia.  Or someone dropped the ball and bringing these banks on board.  Or a programming error.  This is what happens when a giant ecommerce site that can't get basic programming right tries to act like a financial institution.

I am not surprised about the lack of transparency.   It isn't something that eBay is known for.

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

This user has validated their user name. by: The End

Thu Jan 26 06:17:04 2023

We need the Government to come in and break up the Ebay/Etsy monopoly.
Create 5 or 6 new American selling platforms.
Create rules foiling monopolization ever again.

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

This user has validated their user name. by: Bidonmine

Thu Jan 26 08:18:43 2023

"I suspect that eBay has trouble distinguishing between the State of Georgia and the Country of Georgia. "... Perhaps with BofA, BofA does business or has banks in the Country of Georgia... that could be the problem. Other than that... ????

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

by: pace306 This user has validated their user name.

Thu Jan 26 08:43:17 2023

Ill save someone the trouble ...

"I know you dont like it, and I know you hate eBay - but you signed the TOS and in the TOS it says that eBay can do what ever it likes when ever it likes"

"I dont like but Im just explaining all the rules to you."

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

This user has validated their user name. by: iheartjacksparrow

Thu Jan 26 12:21:33 2023

Outside of B of A, Wells Fargo, and Chase, the only other major bank I can think of is Citibank. Smaller banks probably don't offer all the benefits of a larger institution. If eBay is blocking certain banks, there must be some benefit to them.  

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

This user has validated their user name. by: Working It

Thu Jan 26 18:00:04 2023

PNC and US Bank also have branches in all states.
Since eBay was not forthcoming, it's hard to say whether they are acceptable, or not.

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

by: mindelec This user has validated their user name.

Fri Jan 27 22:04:21 2023

i'm in GA and my chase account is linked to ebay, has been for years.  

Perminate Link for eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?   eBay Blackballs Bank Accounts in the State of Georgia?

by: Stone Cutter This user has validated their user name.

Sun Jan 29 10:54:51 2023

“We need the Government to come in and break up the Ebay/Etsy monopoly.”

I think you mean the Amazon monopoly....there are much bigger fish to fry than Ebay/Etsy.  



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