How to tell if Amex purchase is a CA?

TeenWolf · ‎09-06-2022

Is there a way to tell if a purchase on an Amex card was deemed a "cash equivalent" and, thus, a cash advance?

I recently made a purchase on eBay (via PayPal) of a "cash equivalent" with my Amex Blue Cash biz card. My online Amex account is showing the purchase as being under the "Merchandise & Supplies" category and shows the purchase description as: PAYPAL *EBAY US 786762515 CA

I wasn't sure whether the "CA" stood for "cash advance", or whether I'm in the clear if it was coded as "Merchandise & Supplies".

Credit12Fico · ‎09-06-2022

CA is California abbreviation. Ebay HQ is based in california.

If it's showing as "Merchandise and Supplies", then it's probably not a cash advance.

Remedios · ‎09-06-2022

@TeenWolf wrote:
Is there a way to tell if a purchase on an Amex card was deemed a "cash equivalent" and, thus, a cash advance?

I recently made a purchase on eBay (via PayPal) of a "cash equivalent" with my Amex Blue Cash biz card. My online Amex account is showing the purchase as being under the "Merchandise & Supplies" category and shows the purchase description as: PAYPAL *EBAY US 786762515 CA

I wasn't sure whether the "CA" stood for "cash advance", or whether I'm in the clear if it was coded as "Merchandise & Supplies".

Cash advance and cash equivalent aren't synonyms

Did you buy Visa gift cards?

ptatohed · ‎09-06-2022

I believe what shows up on your credit card statement is selected by the seller so I don't think you need to interpret the 'CA' to mean anything alarming. I went through my PayPal history and the statement description for PayPal ebay purchases are all over the place.

You'll see "PAYPAL *1057771625 EBA" on your card statement.

You'll see "PAYPAL *CSALEK EBAY CS" on your card statement.

You'll see "PAYPAL *FISHPONDCOM EB" on your card statement.

You'll see "PAYPAL *GOODWILL MN EBAY GOODWILL MN" on your card statement.

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