Privacy policy
This policy explains what information MoneyKestrel collects, how it is used and shared, how it is protected, and the choices you have. It applies to the MoneyKestrel app (on the web at app.moneykestrel.com and on iOS and Android) and to this website.
Who we are
MoneyKestrel is operated by Axiom Flame LLC ("we", "us"). Axiom Flame LLC is the controller of the personal information described here. You can reach us at hello@moneykestrel.com.
MoneyKestrel keeps a record of private loans, gifts and shared expenses between people who know each other. It never holds, moves or lends money. Money moves between you and the people you deal with, outside MoneyKestrel.
The short version
- We collect what you enter, what the people you deal with record about loans you are part of, and, only if you connect a bank, account and transaction data from your bank through Plaid.
- Your most sensitive details (payment handles, bank tokens, transaction descriptions, receipts, statements, exports and files on your loans) are encrypted under a key that belongs to you or to the loan, before they are stored.
- We do not sell your information, share it for advertising, or use advertising or analytics trackers.
- You can export your data and delete your account from Settings.
What we collect
Information you give us
- Account details: your name, email address and password (stored only as a hash by our sign-in system). You may add a phone number.
- Passkeys and two-step codes: when you add a passkey, your device keeps the private key and checks your face, fingerprint or device PIN itself. We receive and store only the passkey's public key and identifiers, never a fingerprint, face scan or other biometric data. If you turn on an authenticator app, we store its secret encrypted.
- Loan records: the loans, gifts and shared expenses you create or join, their terms, the payments logged against them, and messages posted on a loan's thread.
- Payment details you choose to share with the people you deal with, such as a Zelle or Venmo handle or a QR code.
- Files you upload: agreements, receipts, statements, a profile photo.
- Receipts and statements you forward by email to your MoneyKestrel inbox address. We keep the accepted attachments and a one-way fingerprint of the message ID; we do not store the email itself.
- Messages to us, if you write to hello@moneykestrel.com.
Information from your bank, if you connect one
Connecting a bank is optional. If you do, our bank-connection provider Plaid Inc. ("Plaid") connects to your bank, and we receive and store: the bank's name, your accounts' names, types, the last four digits of each account number, balances, and transactions (date, amount, currency, description, merchant and category). We ask for transactions only, 90 days of history by default.
When you connect, you share your bank login with Plaid, not with us; we never see your bank username or password. Plaid's handling of your information is described in the Plaid End User Privacy Policy. By connecting a bank you acknowledge that Plaid will process your information under that policy.
Information collected automatically
- Sign-in sessions: when you sign in we record the session's IP address and browser or device type, so you can see and end your sessions from Settings.
- Activity and audit log: security events on your account (a passkey added, a password changed, a sign-out on another device) are recorded in your activity. The actions that change a loan are written to a tamper-evident log that includes the device type and IP address they came from.
- Push notification token: if you allow notifications on iOS or Android, your device's push token.
- Service logs: our servers log errors (with the request path) so we can find and fix problems. These logs are kept by Cloudflare, our hosting provider.
Cookies and similar technologies
The app uses one kind of cookie: a sign-in session cookie that is HttpOnly, Secure and SameSite=Lax, and lasts up to 30 days. On iOS and Android the session is kept in the device's secure storage instead. The web app also stores your appearance setting and unsent form drafts in your browser's local storage.
We use no advertising, analytics or tracking cookies, in the app or on this website. This website sets no cookies at all and loads nothing from any other site.
How we use information
We use your information to:
- provide MoneyKestrel: keep your loan records, show each person the parts of a loan they are allowed to see, and work out balances, schedules and shares;
- send you the notifications you have chosen, by email and push;
- read the receipts and statements you upload or forward, so you don't have to type them in (see "Automated reading" below);
- match bank transactions to the loan payments you record, if you connect a bank;
- keep accounts secure: confirm it is you before a commitment, limit repeated sign-in attempts, and investigate misuse;
- comply with law and enforce our terms of use.
We do not sell your personal information, share it for cross-context behavioural advertising, or use it to build advertising profiles. We do not use your information to make credit decisions about you.
Automated reading of receipts and statements
When you upload or forward a receipt or a statement, the file is sent to an AI model run by Cloudflare (Workers AI) with a fixed instruction to read it; nothing else about you is sent. Logging of the request and the response at the gateway is switched off. You review the result before it is used.
Who can see what inside MoneyKestrel
MoneyKestrel is built so that each person sees only what concerns them. These rules are enforced by the database itself, not only by the app.
- People on a loan (the loan admin, the borrower and the funders) see that loan's record, its payments and its thread.
- A borrower never sees how much each funder put in.
- Funders see each other's amounts only if the loan's terms say so; the terms show this before anyone agrees.
- Bank data (accounts, balances, transactions) is visible to you alone. The people on your loans see the payments you record, not your bank data.
- People you invite receive an email with your name and any message you add.
- Notifications never tell a borrower a funder's name, and include no amounts except a funder's own share.
Service providers we share information with
We share information only with the providers that run MoneyKestrel for us, only for that purpose, and under their terms that restrict their use of it. We do not share it with anyone else, except as described under "Legal reasons and business transfers".
| Provider | What it does for us | What it receives | Technical identifiers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supabase | Hosts our database (in the United States) | Everything stored in MoneyKestrel, with sensitive fields encrypted as described below | Hyperdrive |
| Cloudflare | Hosts the app, this website and our servers; stores files; queues background work; reads receipts and statements (Workers AI); receives receipt emails (Email Routing); checks the signatures on those emails (DNS lookups) | Everything passing between your device and our servers; your files (encrypted); the files you ask it to read; forwarded emails | R2, Queues, Workers AI, cloudflare-dns.com |
| Resend | Sends our emails | Your email address, and the subject and text of each email we send you | api.resend.com |
| Plaid | Connects your bank, only if you choose to | Your bank login (which you give Plaid directly), and an identifier for your MoneyKestrel account; returns your accounts and transactions | production.plaid.com, sandbox.plaid.com, cdn.plaid.com |
| Expo | Delivers push notifications to iOS and Android | Your device's push token, and the title and text of each notification | exp.host |
Emails and push notifications are sent only from the live service; test copies of MoneyKestrel never send them.
Legal reasons and business transfers
We may disclose information if we believe in good faith that the law requires it (for example, a valid subpoena or court order), or to protect the rights, property or safety of our users, the public or Axiom Flame LLC. If Axiom Flame LLC is involved in a merger, acquisition or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of it; we will tell you before it becomes subject to a different privacy policy.
How we protect your information
- Encryption under your key or the loan's key. Each person and each loan has its own encryption key (AES-256-GCM). Before they are stored, these are sealed with your key: payment details, QR images and profile photos, exports, bank access tokens, transaction descriptions and merchants, import previews, and receipt readings and originals. Files attached to a loan are sealed with that loan's key.
- Keys are themselves encrypted under a master key held only by our servers, and are handed out only for rows the database allows you to read.
- Not everything is sealed. To work out balances and show your records, some details are stored in readable form in our database (protected by access rules and by the database provider's own encryption at rest): names and email addresses, loan terms and amounts, ledger entries, thread messages, notification text, bank account names, balances and transaction amounts and dates.
- Encrypted connections. The app, our servers and this website are served only over HTTPS.
- Passkeys and confirmations. Commitments such as accepting a loan or finalising a payment need a fresh confirmation with your passkey or authenticator code.
The security summary explains more. No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee that information will never be accessed, disclosed or altered without permission.
How long we keep information
- While your account is open, we keep your records so MoneyKestrel can work.
- Loan records are shared. A loan's ledger and thread belong to everyone on the loan and cannot be edited or deleted, so that nobody can rewrite what was agreed. They stay after you delete your account, showing your name as it was.
- When you delete your account, we destroy your encryption key, which makes everything sealed under it permanently unreadable, and we delete your sign-in details, passkeys, sessions, payment details, personal files (including receipts and imported statements), exports, push tokens and notification settings. Your email address and phone number are removed; your display name stays on the shared loan records.
- Bank connections: when you delete your account, the stored bank access tokens are destroyed with your key, and once the deletion is complete we ask Plaid to remove each of your bank connections. If Plaid can't be reached or a removal fails, we keep a record of which connection was left and its Plaid item identifier (never the access token), so that it can be removed with Plaid directly; we can't retry it ourselves, because the token can no longer be opened. You can also remove a bank yourself at any time in Settings, which asks Plaid to remove it straight away.
- Emails we have already sent stay in our notification records, including the address they were sent to.
- We may keep information longer where the law requires it.
Your choices and rights
- Export: Settings › Your data › Export everything gives you a file with your loans, ledger, payments, thread and activity, and readable PDFs.
- Delete: Settings › Your data › Delete account. You must first close or hand over any open loans, and confirm with your passkey or authenticator code.
- Correct: you can change your name, email and phone number in Settings.
- Notifications: choose which emails and pushes you receive in Settings.
- Sessions: see where you are signed in, and sign out other devices, in Settings.
- Bank connections: disconnect a bank at any time in Settings.
Depending on where you live, you may have further rights, such as to know what we hold about you, to receive a copy, to have it corrected or deleted, or to object to some uses. Write to hello@moneykestrel.com and we will respond within the time the law requires. We will not treat you differently for exercising a right.
Children
MoneyKestrel is for adults. It is not directed to children under 18, and we do not knowingly collect information from them. If you believe a child has given us information, contact us and we will delete it.
Where information is processed
MoneyKestrel is operated from the United States, and our providers process information in the United States and other countries where they operate.
Changes to this policy
When we change this policy we will update its version and effective date at the top. If a change is material, we will tell you in the app or by email before it takes effect.
Contact
Axiom Flame LLC · hello@moneykestrel.com