eBay adds a new Virtual Currency category to their sales site

eBay has quietly added a new category that allows users to buy and sell items related to cryptocurrency including actual virtual currency, mining rigs and mining contracts. In a statement to TechCrunch on the matter, eBay said they updated their Currency Policy in February to promote a trustworthy marketplace and ensure compliance with applicable regulations. As such, listings for Bitcoins and other similar virtual currencies must be listed in the Virtual Currency Category in the Classified Ad format.

eBay, owners of payment service PayPal, has quietly added a new Virtual Currency category to their sales site, allowing users to sell virtual currency like bitcoin, as well as miners, and mining contracts. The category is sparsely populated right now and the listings are all classified ads, suggesting that eBay wants buyer and seller to hash out their sale outside of the company’s jurisdiction, thereby reducing risk of become liable for scams and fake sales. The company has been moving into digital sales over the past year but has long held a no-nonsense policy against digitally downloaded items. One listing for dogecoin, for example, notes that the cryptographic keys to the currency will be sent, presumably on a thumb drive or hard copy, via USPS or UPS rather than via email, something eBay has long frowned upon.