Terms of use

Version 1.0 · Effective 2026-11-13

These terms of use ("Terms") are an agreement between you and Axiom Flame LLC ("we", "us", "our"), which operates MoneyKestrel. They cover the MoneyKestrel app on the web, iOS and Android, and this website (together, the "Service"). By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to these Terms and to our privacy policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

Please read the "Disputes and arbitration" section. It requires most disputes to be resolved by individual arbitration instead of in court, waives class actions and jury trials, and explains how to opt out within 30 days.

What MoneyKestrel is, and what it is not

MoneyKestrel is a record-keeping tool. It helps people who know each other write down loans, gifts and shared expenses between themselves: who agreed to what, the schedule, the payments made and how they were shared.

• We never hold, move or transmit money. Every payment happens directly between users, outside the Service, by whatever method they choose. Recording a payment in MoneyKestrel does not make or confirm it.
• We are not a lender, bank, money transmitter, broker, loan servicer, debt collector, credit bureau, or financial, legal, tax or investment adviser. We do not lend, arrange, guarantee, underwrite, fund, buy or collect any loan, and we do not decide whether anyone should lend, borrow or repay.
• Nothing in the Service is advice. Calculations, schedules, readiness indicators, summaries and suggestions are information to help you keep records. They may contain errors. Talk to a qualified professional before making financial, legal or tax decisions.
• We do not report to credit bureaus and do not use your information for credit decisions.

Agreements between users

The loans, gifts and shared expenses recorded in MoneyKestrel are arrangements between users, not with us. When you accept a loan or sign an agreement with your passkey, you are making a commitment to the other people on it, not to Axiom Flame LLC.

You alone are responsible for:

• deciding whether to enter into an arrangement, and its terms;
• making sure the arrangement is lawful where you and the other parties live, including any limits on interest rates, fees and lending without a licence, and any rules on consumer credit, disclosures and collection;
• the accuracy of what you record, and for keeping your own copies (you can export your records at any time from Settings);
• paying, receiving and reporting money as agreed, including any taxes, information returns or gift tax filings;
• resolving any disagreement with other users.

The agreement documents the Service generates are templates to help you record what you have agreed. We do not promise that any document is suitable for your situation or enforceable where you live. We are not a party to, and have no liability for, any arrangement between users, and we do not take part in disputes between them.

Your account

• Eligibility. You must be at least 18 years old and able to form a binding contract. You may not use the Service if the law forbids it or if we have previously closed your account.
• Accurate information. Give us accurate information and keep it current.
• One person per account. Your account is for you alone. Do not share it or let anyone else use it.
• Passkeys and sign-in. You are responsible for the devices and credentials you use to sign in, including passkeys, passwords and authenticator codes, and for everything done with them. A passkey confirmation from your device counts as your signature and authorisation. Tell us right away at hello@moneykestrel.com if you believe your account has been used without your permission.
• Notices. We may send you notices about your account and these Terms by email or in the app.

Bank connections

Connecting a bank is optional. Bank connections are provided by Plaid Inc. When you connect a bank, you authorise us and Plaid to obtain your account and transaction information from your bank, and you agree that your information will be handled under the Plaid End User Privacy Policy. We are not responsible for Plaid's services or your bank's, or for delays, errors or interruptions in the information they provide. Bank data is shown to help you match payments; it is not a statement from your bank. You can disconnect a bank at any time in Settings.

Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• use the Service to break any law, or to record or facilitate an arrangement that is unlawful, fraudulent or deceptive;
• use it to harass, threaten, defraud or exploit anyone, including to pressure someone into a commitment;
• record information about someone without the right to do so, or impersonate anyone;
• upload malware, or content that infringes someone else's rights;
• try to get into accounts, data or systems that are not yours, probe or test the Service's security without our written permission, or get around its limits (including rate limits);
• scrape, copy, resell or reverse engineer the Service, except where the law allows despite this restriction;
• use the Service to operate a lending, collection or money transmission business.

Your content

You keep ownership of what you put into the Service ("Your Content"). You give us a limited, non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to host, store, copy, process, display and transmit Your Content only as needed to run and improve the Service, to show it to the people you share it with, and to comply with law. You confirm that you have the rights needed to grant this licence.

Records on a loan are shared with everyone on that loan. Because the ledger is kept so that nobody can rewrite it, loan records stay with the other parties after you delete your account, as the privacy policy explains.

Our property

The Service, including its software, design, text, logos and trademarks, belongs to Axiom Flame LLC and its licensors and is protected by law. These Terms give you a personal, revocable, non-transferable, non-exclusive licence to use the Service for your own personal, non-commercial record-keeping while you follow them. If you send us feedback, we may use it without any obligation to you.

Fees

The Service is currently offered without charge. If we introduce fees, we will tell you in advance, and you will not be charged unless you agree.

Changes to the Service and to these Terms

We may change, suspend or stop any part of the Service at any time. We may change these Terms; when we do, we will update the version and effective date at the top. If a change is material, we will tell you in the app or by email at least 30 days before it takes effect, unless the change is required by law or addresses a security risk. If you keep using the Service after a change takes effect, you accept it. If you do not agree, stop using the Service and delete your account.

Ending your use of the Service

You may delete your account at any time from Settings, once any open loans are closed or handed over. We may suspend or close your account, with or without notice, if you break these Terms, if the law requires it, or if we reasonably believe your use creates risk or harm for other users, for us or for others. We may also stop offering the Service entirely; if we do, we will give you reasonable notice so you can export your records. Sections that by their nature should survive (including "Agreements between users", "Your content", "Disclaimers", "Limitation of liability", "Indemnity", "Disputes and arbitration" and "General") survive termination.

Disclaimers

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT ALLOWED BY LAW, THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE", WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT AND ACCURACY. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, SECURE OR ERROR-FREE, THAT CALCULATIONS, SCHEDULES OR DOCUMENTS WILL BE ACCURATE, COMPLETE OR ENFORCEABLE, OR THAT ANY USER WILL KEEP THEIR COMMITMENTS. WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONDUCT OF ANY USER, OR FOR ANY THIRD-PARTY SERVICE, INCLUDING BANKS, PLAID, PAYMENT APPS AND EMAIL OR MOBILE PROVIDERS. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN WARRANTIES, SO SOME OF THESE EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

Limitation of liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT ALLOWED BY LAW:

• Axiom Flame LLC AND ITS MEMBERS, MANAGERS, EMPLOYEES, CONTRACTORS AND SERVICE PROVIDERS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, DATA, GOODWILL OR MONEY (INCLUDING ANY AMOUNT A USER FAILS TO PAY OR REPAY), ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE SERVICE OR THESE TERMS, EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN TOLD SUCH DAMAGES ARE POSSIBLE;
• OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE SERVICE OR THESE TERMS WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNTS YOU PAID US FOR THE SERVICE IN THE 12 MONTHS BEFORE THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM, AND (B) ONE HUNDRED U.S. DOLLARS (US$100).

These limits apply whatever the legal theory (contract, tort including negligence, statute or otherwise), and even if a remedy fails of its essential purpose. They do not limit liability that cannot be limited by law, such as for our fraud, gross negligence or wilful misconduct.

Indemnity

To the extent allowed by law, you will defend, indemnify and hold harmless Axiom Flame LLC and its members, managers, employees, contractors and service providers from any claims, losses, liabilities, damages, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of: your use of the Service; any arrangement you enter into with another user; Your Content; or your breach of these Terms or of any law or anyone's rights. We may take over the defence of any such claim at our own expense, and you will cooperate with us.

Disputes and arbitration

Please read this section carefully. It affects your legal rights.

Talk to us first. Before starting a formal dispute, you agree to write to hello@moneykestrel.com with your name, a description of the dispute and what you want, and to try in good faith to resolve it with us for at least 60 days. We will do the same before starting a formal dispute with you.

Binding individual arbitration. If we cannot resolve it informally, you and Axiom Flame LLC agree that any dispute, claim or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service (a "Dispute") will be resolved by final and binding arbitration on an individual basis, except as described below. This agreement is governed by the Federal Arbitration Act. The arbitration will be administered by the American Arbitration Association ("AAA") under its Consumer Arbitration Rules then in effect, before a single arbitrator. Unless you and we agree otherwise, any hearing will take place by video or telephone, or in the county where you live. The arbitrator may award the same individual relief a court could, but only to you individually. The arbitrator, not a court, decides questions about the scope and enforceability of this section, except that a court decides questions about the class action waiver and about whether a claim belongs in small claims court. Payment of filing and arbitrator fees will be as the AAA Consumer Arbitration Rules provide.

Exceptions. Either of us may bring an individual claim in small claims court if it qualifies. Either of us may ask a court for an injunction to stop infringement or misuse of intellectual property or unauthorised access to the Service.

Class action and jury trial waiver. YOU AND Axiom Flame LLC EACH AGREE TO BRING DISPUTES ONLY IN AN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY CLASS, COLLECTIVE, CONSOLIDATED OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING. YOU AND Axiom Flame LLC EACH WAIVE THE RIGHT TO A JURY TRIAL. If this class action waiver is found unenforceable for a particular claim, that claim (and only that claim) will be decided in court, not in arbitration.

Mass filings. If 25 or more similar demands for arbitration are filed against us by the same or coordinated counsel, the AAA's rules for mass arbitrations will apply, and the demands may be resolved in batches.

Your right to opt out. You may opt out of this arbitration agreement by emailing hello@moneykestrel.com within 30 days after you first accept these Terms, with the subject "Arbitration opt-out", your name, and the email address on your account. Opting out does not affect any other part of these Terms. If we make a material change to this section, you may reject the change by emailing us within 30 days after it takes effect.

Court venue. Any Dispute that is not arbitrated (including after an opt-out) will be brought only in the state courts located in Cook County, Illinois, or the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, and you and we consent to their personal jurisdiction.

Time limit. To the extent allowed by law, any claim must be brought within one year after it arises, or it is permanently barred.

Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Illinois, without regard to its conflict of law rules, except that the "Disputes and arbitration" section is governed by the Federal Arbitration Act. Nothing in these Terms takes away rights you have under the consumer protection laws of the place where you live that cannot be waived by contract.

General

• Entire agreement. These Terms and the privacy policy are the whole agreement between you and us about the Service.
• Severability. If any part of these Terms is found unenforceable, the rest stays in effect, and that part will be enforced to the greatest extent allowed.
• No waiver. If we do not enforce a right, we have not given it up.
• Assignment. You may not transfer these Terms without our written consent. We may transfer them in connection with a merger, acquisition or sale of assets, or to an affiliate.
• No third-party beneficiaries. These Terms do not give rights to anyone else, including other users.
• Force majeure. We are not responsible for delays or failures caused by events beyond our reasonable control.
• Electronic communications. You agree to receive notices and agreements electronically, and that electronic signatures (including passkey confirmations) satisfy any requirement for a written signature.
• Headings are for convenience only.

Contact

Axiom Flame LLC · hello@moneykestrel.com