I think I understand change, but where did it go?

[nutticrypto]

Hey,

Sorry if this has been asked before, but I can't wrap my head around it and it's killing me. I started doing some accounting and maybe I'm too thorough but anyways:

I did a transfer from GDAX to my wallet:

https://btc.com/1d1860c26f73b88175626b757d125a650080a45e7e4988b0777475b3630875a7

The amount was 0.13189319

So, if I understand correctly: I did not have that exact amount as an output - so the transfered input was 0.14161162.

This is where I start to fail to understand.. I don't know where this amount comes from. I can't add that amount up to any of my purchases.. Anyways, moving on.

The total output was 0.14071640 with a fee of 0.00089522.

This makes 0.00882321 in change.

Now, my wallet has a balance of 0.13189319 - but where did the change go? Did it go back to my GDAX wallet? Because I can't see that amount in my history at all.

Thanks for any assistance!

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[DannyHamilton]

You do not have a wallet at GDAX. You have an account.  The bitcoins are under the control of GDAX.  In other words, they are effectively GDAX's bitcoins and all you have is a promise from GDAX that they will send an agreed number of THEIR bitcoins wherever you ask.

So, you asked them to send 0.13189319 of THEIR bitcoins to your bitcoin address 13SAFPbvuPtYpE8F6i2EBwWkRKiZaddQC6.

They chose to pay a transaction fee of 0.00089522 BTC

Since they didn't have any unspent outputs available that were exactly 0.13278841 BTC, they chose to use an output of theirs from their wallet that was 0.14161162 BTC.

Then they created 2 outputs.  One for 0.13189319 BTC to the address that you asked them to send to, and the other for 0.00882321 BTC we don't know for certain what happened with.  There are two possibilities...

That second output might be sent back into THEIR OWN wallet at new address 15RqwUtBTmvUsZp3zbXWaEordo17BHX8kk

OR

It is possible that someone else requested a payment from GDAX at nearly the same moment as you did. It is possible that the other person requested 0.00882321 BTC.  In that case, that other output could be the requested payment to someone else's wallet.

[nutticrypto]

Oh! That might explain it! Thank you so very very much.