At its meeting on August 15, 2008, the Reserve Bank of Australia's Payments System Board considered the no surcharge and no-steering rules imposed on users of PayPal. The bank issued a statement about the meeting, and had this to say about eBay's payment processing subsidiary:
Over recent months, the Board has received a number of comments on the no-surcharge and no-steering rules that apply to payments using the PayPal system as well as the mandated acceptance of PayPal on eBay's auction site. Where no-surcharge and no-steering rules have existed in other systems, the Board has encouraged their removal on the grounds that these rules can diminish competition in the payments system. Consistent with this, the Bank will shortly be holding discussions with PayPal with a view to seeking the removal of these rules.
The Payments System Board of the RBA has responsibility for promoting stability, efficiency and competition in the payments system, including removing restrictions on merchants that limit their choices in accepting payment instruments.
When eBay Australia announced plans to mandate the exclusive use of PayPal for all transactions on the site, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) had filed its objection with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). After eBay withdrew its so called "Stage 2" policy, sellers filed complaints with the RBA about the Stage 1 policy left in place that required users to offer PayPal on all transactions.
Users are also fuming over PayPal's actions regarding an eBay PowerSeller who left buyers in the lurch.
