Online auction site OZtion said it has seen an increase in listings and new members since competing site eBay Australia announced all items must be paid for using PayPal. OZtion's online auction listings have grown by 22% in the last two weeks to 580,000 simultaneous listings. In the same period, daily new member registrations have increased by 165% and daily new sellers registrations by 300%. OZtion's registrations are now more than a quarter of a million.

Philip Druce, General Manager for OZtion, said "The fact that OZtion has seen significant growth across most metrics shows that Australians are looking for alternatives to eBay and will not be forced into only using PayPal. Our internal data shows that 79% of buyers prefer to pay by bank deposit."

OZtion said it has taken a different approach with regard to fraud prevention. Instead of limiting acceptable payment methods, it has created a comprehensive range of identity checks for its members and has also partnered with Australia Post to provide the same level of identity check required to open a bank account.

Philip Druce said, "Many online fraudulent activities are only possible because sites make it easy to create a fake identity. When a crime occurs with a fake identity, sites that don't check identities just shrug their shoulders and hand the fake details to the victim. OZtion focuses on preventing fraud and has created a range of identity checks for both buyers and sellers, allowing Australians to shop online with confidence."

Philip Druce and Kelvin Yip launched OZtion in 2005 in Melbourne.

http://www.oztion.com.au