LinuxQuestions.org - paypal payment/conversion question

Obscurity and deceit are the rule when big business does not want to tell you what its limitations are but wants you to only discover such limitations after you sign the contract.
I only made a few rare payments through Paypal many years ago and know nothing about it except its existence as a payment processor.

As I understand Paypal's online explanations:
a) Its main business is to accept payment for national purchases made to a national Paypal account in the national currency (for example: purchases made in Australia paid to a Paypal Australian account in Australian dollars and transferable to a linked Australian banking account)
b) It is able to accept payment in US$ and Euro but it does not clarify if that is possible if paid to an Australian account as it seems to define "international payments" as Euro payments seen from a US perspective.
c) There is no way to find if it is possible to make a payment from India or South Africa to an Australian business Paypal account and how, for example, although it seems Paypal is able to keep payments in their "own currency" which seems to imply that "international payments" are possible somehow beside US<->Euro transactions.

My questions:
1) Has anyone any hint or link on what really takes place in such circumstances?
2) Has anyone any anecdotal evidence of Paypal collecting payments only to tell the payee that there is no suitable account to which to transfer the payments (many years ago I read horror stories of Paypal happily keeping customers' money)?
3) Paypal now seems to have a fair bit of competition, is there a competitor better equipped for international payments?

Thank you for your help.