Bitcoins on Ebay

[MixtapeMan]

How come Bitcoins on Ebay sell for such a high premium?

I see one about to sell for $7 over the exchange price? Why would people pay near double to get something?

[saddambitcoin]

there is a premium because of sellers accepting Paypal, which is a reversible payment...

i think that is why

[RandomQ]

Because the chances of getting ripped off are almost 100%.

Paypal will refund the Buyer's money for any reason and because you have no proof you are sending anything via the mail you can't prove anything.

Never buy or sell Bitcoins with anything that is reversible.

I sold over $600 worth via paypal with someone I thought was trustworthy (1000+ post count) but almost a month after the trade it was reversed.

Learn from my Lesson

Its kinda like that anti-drug ad "Meth Not even Once"

"Paypal Not Even Once"


/End public service announcement

[MixtapeMan]

still do not get it and I completely understand all the paypal concerns and have heard all the horror stories but...

-Its the buyers not the sellers setting the premium on Ebay (so its not like the seller is adding in a scam premium to his price - its an auction where price is determined by the buying community)

-There are lots and lots of ways to protect yourself on Ebay (including things like cancelling bids to low rated users, accepting different forms of payment besides paypal, only accepting verified payments etc.)

Do you really think everyone paying a $6 premium on Ebay for a Bitcoin is scamming?

Getting aged and verified Ebay and paypal accounts is not the easiest task and would most likely cost much more then a $7 scam is worth.

[k3t3r]

if the buyer is reversing the payment he doesnt care what he pays.
buyers $100 by paypal for 1 BTC 1 month later he gets his $100 dollar back and has a 1 BTC for free.

[matauc12]

still do not get it and I completely understand all the paypal concerns and have heard all the horror stories but...

-Its the buyers not the sellers setting the premium on Ebay (so its not like the seller is adding in a scam premium to his price - its an auction where price is determined by the buying community)

-There are lots and lots of ways to protect yourself on Ebay (including things like cancelling bids to low rated users, accepting different forms of payment besides paypal, only accepting verified payments etc.)

Do you really think everyone paying a $6 premium on Ebay for a Bitcoin is scamming?

Getting aged and verified Ebay and paypal accounts is not the easiest task and would most likely cost much more then a $7 scam is worth.

its not the sellers that scam.

Buyers will set the price as in any free market... but they will pay millions for something thats worth 10$ if they dont actually have to pay a cent.

[matauc12]

Oh and also.. some people legitely buy btc from ebay just because its the best way they know..

[illWill]

Oh and also.. some people legitely buy btc from ebay just because its the best way they know..

+1

[Fcx35x10]

Oh and also.. some people legitely buy btc from ebay just because its the best way they know..

++ i totally agree with you.

[drcoinflip]

Oh and also.. some people legitely buy btc from ebay just because its the best way they know..

#bitcoin-otc on freenode could also be helpful for people just wanting to buy some BTC.
Its not that hard

[Adir]

I sold over $600 worth via paypal with someone I thought was trustworthy (1000+ post count) but almost a month after the trade it was reversed.

correct me if I'm wrong but you could withdrew the funds from Paypal to your bank account, no?

[gurki]

Oh and also.. some people legitely buy btc from ebay just because its the best way they know..

#bitcoin-otc on freenode could also be helpful for people just wanting to buy some BTC.
Its not that hard

Are they doing it at market rate, or at ebay like prices?

[Endgame]

Oh and also.. some people legitely buy btc from ebay just because its the best way they know..

#bitcoin-otc on freenode could also be helpful for people just wanting to buy some BTC.
Its not that hard

Are they doing it at market rate, or at ebay like prices?

It depends on what you negotiate with the people on there. But yes you can get market rate on bitcoin-otc. It just takes a little bit of patience to initially set up.

[DonShrents]

Although I doubt the sale of bitcoins will last long on Ebay, you have to understand or take a closer look at it from a buyer's point of view. Let's say that someone is looking to purchase bitcoins for the sole purpose of taking them to Silk Road in order to purchase drugs. For a newbie, getting everything together can mean quite the learning curve. Learn how to use TOR, connect to Silk Road, find what you want. NOW, all you need are bitcoins.
To then go and sign up for an Exchange account (Mt.Gox etc) and attempt to transfer money into said account to acquire bitcoins and hopefully get it done in the least amount of time possible, OR, simply buy a few bitcoins using Paypal on Ebay and pay a premium just so that you can save a bunch of time and effort.
In a situation such as that, it makes sense that one might agree to paying up to a 30% premium over market price on bitcoins just to get it done quickly and easilly.

~DonShrents

[FLHippy]

In a situation such as that, it makes sense that one might agree to paying up to a 30% premium over market price on bitcoins just to get it done quickly and easilly.

I sell bitcoins on eBay and I sell them at AT LEAST a 30% markup after eBay/PayPal fees.
Small transactions only (1s,2s sometimes ) Most people just need 1 coin.
I estimate 90% of those coins are heading to SR. Where sellers charge another 30% markup from "street prices"

They know damn well they're being taxed. They're happy to pay these taxes.
I get a lot of repeat business too off eBay. Most of it by phone.

Everyone seems happy, why question it?

[DonShrents]

I sell bitcoins on eBay and I sell them at AT LEAST a 30% markup after eBay/PayPal fees.
Small transactions only (1s,2s sometimes ) Most people just need 1 coin.
I estimate 90% of those coins are heading to SR. Where sellers charge another 30% markup from "street prices"

They know damn well they're being taxed. They're happy to pay these taxes.
I get a lot of repeat business too off eBay. Most of it by phone.

Everyone seems happy, why question it?

Have you run into many ? if any problems on Ebay ?
Has Ebay Community Watch (or whatever it's called) been in contact with you in regards to listings ? Has Paypal caused any problems for you at all ?

As with most others, my biggest concern would simply be to put both my long standing Paypal account and Ebay account in jeopardy if there ever were to be constant problems with bitcoin transactions (not paying using bitcoins, but the selling of bitcoins for Paypal USD etc.)

I would be interested in hearing more about your personal experiences, perhaps you can help others that may be experiencing trouble.

~DonShrents

[FLHippy]

I sell bitcoins on eBay and I sell them at AT LEAST a 30% markup after eBay/PayPal fees.
Small transactions only (1s,2s sometimes ) Most people just need 1 coin.
I estimate 90% of those coins are heading to SR. Where sellers charge another 30% markup from "street prices"

They know damn well they're being taxed. They're happy to pay these taxes.
I get a lot of repeat business too off eBay. Most of it by phone.

Everyone seems happy, why question it?

Have you run into many ? if any problems on Ebay ?
Has Ebay Community Watch (or whatever it's called) been in contact with you in regards to listings ? Has Paypal caused any problems for you at all ?

I have had very few problems and 0 problems since I re-vamped my sales policies. Out of about 100 coins sold on eBay over 1 year time span I have been ripped off three times for 1 coin each time. I have spotted scams in advance of being ripped off 10 times and contacted PayPal/eBay to report fraud. The three times I was scammed was in the first 10 coins I sold and I almost gave up.

I now have a very restrictive sales policy. If I even have a hint of scam I will only ship them their coin on PAPER through the US Mail. This *MIGHT* protect you from a PayPal charge back. Real people never complain when you tell them you're going to have to ship their coins on paper for their first transaction (or first few transactions). Scammers always complain. I only ship to USA buyers because of PayPal's seller protection policies.

I have not had any problems with eBay Community Watch, eBay itself, or PayPal other than PayPal always sides with the buyer when a chargeback is issued and you don't have proof of shipment.

I'm so way small time, these sales of coins pay for my lunch at best. This would never work for large quantities of coins. Anytime you're dealing with large amounts of cash you're a robbery waiting to happen.

Hope this helps, be very careful. If you would like to copy my sales policy, send me a private message here and I'll send you the text. In the long term, eBay is just a means to meet new (honest) people who want to buy 1-10 coins from time to time. I only list on eBay when my usual buyers are not calling me.