You make some great points. My original assertion about hiding behind usernames has been thoroughly blown out of the water, given the success of eBay and Etsy.

You make some great points. My original assertion about hiding behind usernames has been thoroughly blown out of the water, given the success of eBay and Etsy. I had always assumed that they handled the payments themselves, but clearly they've found ways to protect buys and sellers without sacrificing privacy. I prefer when everyone knows who everyone else is, personally, but I understand that many people don't want to broadcast their personal information.