"I would like to see this option return (it would save transaction and currency conversion fees both ways)".

May I ask, is this tried and tested, i.e. you used your balance to pay for an item in a currency other than GBP, and paid no transaction and conversion fees? So far, I've only used my balance for purchases in GBP.

If this is so, then this is obviously a benefit of paying with your balance (as well as the occasional discount), and one which eBay should be highlighting.

I've also been thinking some more about the change, and am now less cynical about it, especially if what you say about not paying transaction and conversion fees is the case (sorry if I sound doubtful, I'm just looking for a clear positive declaration that this is so).

Given that we're stuck with the eBay Balance - whether we like it or lump it, eBay no longer pays out sale proceeds automatically and directly to our bank accounts - and assuming you are correct, the fact that the money stays there until we use or withdraw it is a clear boon for those like yourself, as an automatic quarterly payout may - depending on the timing - deprive you of the opportunity to make a fee-free non-GBP purchase. You'd either have to build up enough in a new balance (by which time it may be too late to make the purchase) or use a bank like Monzo that doesn't charge transaction or currency conversion fees.

The only members for whom this change might be unwelcome are those that were relying on the automatic quarterly payouts. But why rely on them anyway? Our funds are far better off in our accounts than sitting idle in our balances, so why not withdraw sales proceeds as they become available to withdraw? The only valid reason (other than indifference) for leaving the funds there, in the light of the opening post, is that one might wish to use the balance for a non-GBP purchase (and doesn't have a bank account like the one mentioned earlier). So, the only ones I can imagine this having a negative impact on are the (hopefully small) minority who are both extremely forgetful AND who fail to check their balance on a regular basis (or - if they even exist - those who, for some reason, don't realize they can withdraw their balance manually, and mistakenly believe that they have to wait for the automatic payout). And even then, they haven't actually lost any money (unless you count interest that could potentially have been earned had it been placed in a savings account instead of being left in the balance).

So, despite my initial cynicism, I'm now more positive about this change. It's definitely a bonus for those who wish to use their balance for non-GBP purchases (again, assuming the claim about fees is correct), it won't matter for those who routinely withdraw their funds anyway (not waiting for an automatic payout), and will only possibly be an issue for the highly forgetful few (who arguably have a case to make if they say that eBay should get rid of the eBay Balance and go back to paying sale proceeds directly to the seller's bank account, but as mentioned at the start of this post, that seems unlikely to happen).