Does anybody remember the standard 7 day hold on all bank deposited checks back in the 80's?
Congress finally busted them for the practice called "float". Banks would process your deposit that night, then collect the interest on the money in short term accounts until finally making your funds available to you.
In a concession, the banks then went to 3 day holds. Finally, they had no excuse and had to make the deposits same day except in certain circumstances, like not enough money in the account to cover the check in case of NSF or fraud.
Looks like PayPal (and their owner eBay!) have brought back "float" as a way of making short term profits and force everyone to upgrade to a paying account. Killing two birds with one stone.
And it's all legal since PayPal is not a bank and probably not beholden to the "float" regulations.
Congress finally busted them for the practice called "float". Banks would process your deposit that night, then collect the interest on the money in short term accounts until finally making your funds available to you.
In a concession, the banks then went to 3 day holds. Finally, they had no excuse and had to make the deposits same day except in certain circumstances, like not enough money in the account to cover the check in case of NSF or fraud.
Looks like PayPal (and their owner eBay!) have brought back "float" as a way of making short term profits and force everyone to upgrade to a paying account. Killing two birds with one stone.
And it's all legal since PayPal is not a bank and probably not beholden to the "float" regulations.