crazyscot

Ebay have US$2.35 of my money, being a promotional credit for sellers fees from about 9 years ago (thanks to their screwball accounting at the time, they then started charged me in sterling and wouldn't offset them against the US$ positive balance). I got round to asking them how they might get it back to me. They had a credit card number from me back at that time, but (as well as being years expired) the account has been sold on to another bank and the card number completely changed. They can't pay me by BACS, all they will do is take an IBAN and SWIFTBIC and pay me that way. Apparently they are prepared to do this despite the small sum involved.

So obviously I have missed something and this isn't automatically a bad idea due to telegraphic transfer fees and suchlike. Perhaps it's because of the existence of eBay S.à r.l. who are based in Luxembourg, and hence able to make a relatively inexpensive payment via the European financial networks.

I have some (admittedly wobbly) hopes that the Right Thing will happen here, at least in principle. How much money, and in what currency, will eventually reach my UK account? If not in pounds, how dreadful a conversion rate will Barclays apply? Will the Eurozone crash meantime and render the payment worthless? Will the charges turn out to be a loophole that remotely sucks money out of my account? Place bets now!