@j_ds_au, your accusation about sandypebbles being a "muppet" lacks basis in fact.
To the best of my knowledge, sandypebbles has never even met Kermit.
In terms of eBay placing a hold on money for sellers deemed to be higher risk (such as a new seller, old seller who's been dormant for quite a while, seller suddenly selling high-value items not consistent with previous sales, etc), that is not an unusual risk mitigation measure.
There are undoubtedly some drawbacks to that approach, and it particularly impacts hobby sellers or occasional sellers who are mostly buyers. No one denies that. It's unfortunate that eBay's current direction is clearly geared towards new big-box sellers or business sellers, away from the type of seller that used to make eBay a place of bizarrities, strange glories, odds and ends and more. But c'est la vie.
Yes, PayPal did hold funds of newish or higher risk sellers.
Funds management laws to avoid money laundering and fraudulent movement of funds have changed in recent times, and what one financial firm did in the past may have little relevance to what that same (or an entirely different) financial firm must do now.
None of that means that there weren't abuses in particular instances against some sellers. But calling people with whom you don't agree a "muppet" is neither helpful nor accurate.
