Flinks

# Fix list: Flinks

From Anchor Terminal's listing at https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/flinks, the October 2026 research run, assessed 8 October 2026. Grade D, 52.7 out of 100.

This is everything the published grade says the listing lacks, the biggest possible gain to the total first. It comes from the reason given for each score, the checklist each category was scored against (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist), the provenance checks, the deductions, what we couldn't check and what the review panel asked for. A fix counts at the next check, once it's public.

For a coding agent working on Flinks: work through the items below in the product, its docs and its public pages. Each category gives the reason for its score, with the points each checklist item earned, and the checklist itself, so the gap is the items that earned less than their points. Change the product, not the wording, and keep a note of what you changed and where it's published.

## 1. Reliability, 53 out of 100, up to 9.4 more on the total

Why it scored 53: Graded with the hosted lines. status.flinks.com on incident.io has seven product components plus one per bank, with history (20). In the 90 days to 8 October 2026 the history lists 77 incidents and two maintenance windows. 61 are named for a single institution. 16 are on Flinks' own components, among them Data Aggregation for 26 hours 45 minutes from 12 July, Enrich and the Dashboard for 44 hours from 19 August, and one on 6 August that marked Data Aggregation as a partial outage. None is labelled major. The checklist gives 20 for minor incidents only, and we score 12 of 30 because of their number and length. No rate-limit numbers are published (0). `TOO_MANY_REQUESTS` is documented under HTTP 401 with no Retry-After. The docs give a 10-second polling interval and a 30-minute cap for 202 responses, and no idempotency keys were found (5 of 15). The Master Terms commit to best efforts at 99 per cent monthly availability, with no service credits (6 of 10). The v3 API is generally available (10).

The checklist (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist-reliability):

Hosted APIs, MCP servers, models and platforms.

- 20, a public status page with component history (Statuspage, Instatus, BetterStack or the vendor's own).
- 0 to 30, the incident record for the last 90 days on that page. 30 for a clean record or trivial incidents only, 20 for minor incidents only, 10 for one major outage (an hour or more of a core API down, or errors across the board), 0 for several. 5 when there's no history we could read, and the note says so.
- 15, rate limits documented with numbers.
- 15, documented 429 or overload handling (Retry-After, backoff guidance), and idempotency keys or safe-retry guidance where writes are involved.
- 10, an SLA published for any paid tier.
- 10, the surface agents use is generally available, not beta or preview.

Local packages, SDKs, frameworks and stdio MCP servers.

- 20, installs from an official package with supported runtimes stated.
- 25, a public CI and test suite, passing on the default branch.
- 0 to 25, open crash or regression issues relative to activity (25 for few and handled, 0 for many, old and unanswered).
- 15, semver discipline and breaking changes called out in a changelog.
- 15, version 1.0 or later, or declared stable.

Protocols are read from their reference implementations, the public facilitators or servers, spec stability and test vectors.

## 2. Payments & pricing, 25 out of 100, up to 9.4 more on the total

Why it scored 25: No x402, MPP or L402 (0). Plan prices are public with included volumes, from $500 a month for 200 connections. Overage rates sit in the contract and the currency is not stated (10 of 20). The Toolbox sandbox is free with no card. There is no free live tier or self-serve trial (10 of 20). Sandbox keys are published in the docs, so an agent can make test calls with no signup. Live access needs a sales contract with a one-year term (5 of 20).

The checklist (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist-payments):

The published rubric, also on the [x402 page](https://www.anchorterminal.com/x402/).

- 40, a machine payment protocol (x402, MPP or L402) on the tool's own endpoints. 10 to 30 when it covers only some endpoints or only goes through a third party, and the note says which.
- 20, per-call or per-unit pricing published without a login. 10 for public plan-only pricing, 0 for "contact sales" or prices behind a login.
- 20, a free tier or trial that doesn't need a card.
- 20, autonomous onboarding, meaning an agent can get access without a person signing up in a browser (keyless use, x402, a programmatic key API).

Payment platforms and agent wallets rarely charge for their own API over a machine protocol, so the first line has steps for them, and the highest one that applies counts. 40 when x402, MPP or L402 runs on all their own endpoints, 30 when it runs on part of their own API, 25 when their merchants can accept one, 20 for running a facilitator, 15 for paying as a buyer, and 0 when the only protocol is their own. Merchant acceptance sits above a facilitator because the platform's own customers can charge agents through it, while a facilitator settles for sellers who wire up the protocol themselves. The counter-argument (a facilitator does more for the protocol as a whole) has a point. Each note says which step applied.

Open-source software you run yourself is scored on its hosted or paid option if it has one. A free, self-hosted package with nothing to buy gets 20, 20 and 20 for the last three lines, and 0 to 40 for the first only if it ships a payment protocol.

## 3. Security & auth, 50 out of 100, up to 8.8 more on the total

Why it scored 50: A secret key and an `x-api-key`, both issued by Flinks, neither expiring, with no scopes and no documented rotation for the Connect API. The authorise token is single-use and lasts 15 minutes. Outbound has an endpoint to regenerate a client secret. A partner access token travels in the URL path of `/partneraccess/{accesstoken}`, which is not a query string, so no deduction (14 of 30). The Connect data API reads bank data and cannot move money. Flinks Pay has its own authorisation. `/DeleteCard` deletes a connection's data with no confirmation step, and credential-based connections mean Flinks stores bank logins (10 of 20). Responses carry bank-written transaction descriptions, and no guidance on treating them as untrusted was found (7 of 15). The Dashboard's Request Feed lists every request with status, `requestId` and `loginId`, with roles, 2FA and IP allow-listing for staff. No API audit log was found (8 of 15). SOC 2 Type II is stated with the report on request, the Master Terms commit to ISO 27001 audit reports, and the security page gives security@flinks.com for vulnerability reports. No security.txt or bug bounty was found (11 of 20).

The checklist (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist-security):

- 0 to 30, the credential model. 30 for OAuth 2.1 with scopes, or scoped and revocable keys with rotation. 20 for plain revocable API keys. 10 for one all-powerful key. 10 off when a secret can travel in a URL query string as a documented option.
- 0 to 20, read-only or least-privilege modes, and confirmation or approval for destructive actions.
- 0 to 15, prompt-injection posture where the tool returns untrusted content (documented mitigations or guidance). A tool that returns no untrusted content gets 10.
- 0 to 15, audit logs or per-call visibility for the operator.
- 0 to 20, a security programme. security.txt or a disclosure policy, a bug bounty, SOC 2 or ISO 27001, advisories handled in public.

Models are read for retention, whether API data trains models (and whether that's off by default), zero-retention options and certifications. Frameworks for telemetry defaults, approval hooks, guardrails and sandboxing.

## 4. Agent ergonomics, 54 out of 100, up to 7.5 more on the total

Why it scored 54: `WithTransactions`, `WithKYC`, `AccountsFilter` and `DaysOfTransactions` trim a response, and `/GetAccountsSummary` is a lighter call. No field selection was found (16 of 25). `/GetAccountsDetail` returns up to 365 days of transactions in one payload with no pagination. `/Institutions` takes `skip` and `take`, and the Outbound FDX paths take `offset`, `limit` and time filters (10 of 20). The error page lists 29 codes with a description and a way to reproduce each, though most sit under HTTP 401, the rate-limit code among them (14 of 20). No idempotency keys were found. Cached-mode reads can be repeated, and a completing call consumes the `requestId` (8 of 20). `RequestId` is the only required body field and defaults are stated, but a first read takes three calls plus a widget session and no official SDK was found (6 of 15).

The checklist (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist-ergonomics):

- 0 to 25, context cost. For MCP, the number and size of the tool definitions (25 for ten or fewer compact tools, 15 for 11 to 30, 5 for more than 30, plus up to 10 back for toolsets, dynamic loading or read-only subsets). For APIs, whether responses can be sized (field selection, limits, summaries).
- 20, pagination, filtering and output-size controls.
- 20, actionable, documented error responses, codes and messages an agent can recover from.
- 20, idempotency or safe retries, and for MCP the `readOnlyHint` and `destructiveHint` annotations.
- 15, sensible defaults, few required parameters, and official SDKs in at least two languages.

Models are read for tool use, structured output, prompt caching, context length, batch and SDKs. Frameworks for how much code and how many defaults a tool-calling agent with MCP needs.

## 5. Maintenance & community, 31 out of 100, up to 6 more on the total

Why it scored 31: The newest changelog entry is dated 1 September 2026, 37 days before the check (20 of 30). Two dated entries fall in the last 90 days, on 1 August and 1 September, so the line for three is not met (0). Closed service with a monthly changelog and a support portal for tickets. Response times were not sampled (8 of 15). No official SDK or package was found. We give 3 of 15 for the current skill file and documentation MCP server, a departure from the checklist. No public package or CI to assess (0 of 10).

The checklist (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist-maintenance):

- 0 to 30, time since the last release, or the last published model or API change for a closed service. 30 within 30 days, 20 within 90, 10 within 180, 0 older.
- 20, at least three releases or dated changelog entries in the last 90 days.
- 0 to 25, responsiveness. Issues and pull requests answered on GitHub (the open issues and how recent the replies are). For closed services, a public changelog and a support or community channel that answers, 0 to 15.
- 15, presence in the official MCP registry under a verified namespace (MCP servers), or current official SDKs (APIs and models).
- 10, package health, current dependencies and CI.

Models are read for deprecation notice periods and model churn rather than release counts.

## 6. Transparency & trust, 60 out of 100, up to 3.5 more on the total

Made of editorial 48, provenance 71.

Why it scored 60: Closed service with public Master Terms dated 3 August 2023 and service schedules. The terms say Flinks may modify them without prior notice (15 of 30). The Services Privacy Statement of 19 April 2024 says data is kept as long as needed for the client's service, the docs say a connection's data is kept until `/DeleteCard` is called, and the terms say end-customer data is deleted in the normal course after termination. No fixed retention periods and no public DPA were found (16 of 30). No deprecation policy was found. The changelog notes that the Pay V1 endpoint stays supported, and the terms let Flinks remove any data source at its discretion (5 of 20). Instances are hosted per country so data stays in Canada or the US, the security page names Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, and the privacy statement lists most other service providers by category only (12 of 20). Regulatory standing counts here as an addition to the checklist (+5 for a named regulator with a register number, +3 for a named regulator alone). The privacy statement says Flinks reports suspicious Flinks Pay transactions to FINTRAC, and no registration number was found (+0).

The checklist (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist-transparency):

- 0 to 30, source availability and licence clarity. 30 for open source under an OSI licence, 15 for closed with clear terms, 0 for unclear terms.
- 0 to 30, data handling and retention statements that agree with each other (privacy policy, DPA, retention periods, subprocessors).
- 0 to 20, a deprecation policy or notices with dates.
- 0 to 20, telemetry disclosed with an opt-out (local software), or subprocessors and data locations disclosed (hosted).

The other half of Transparency and trust is the provenance score, computed from checked facts (below). The category score is the mean of the two.

Provenance checks not met in full (half of this category, computed from checked facts):

- Endpoint on the vendor's domain:  is not on flinks.com (0 of 15)
- Terms of service: read, states 6 of the 7 things a reader expects, and has 1 clause that costs points (7.1 of 10)
- Privacy policy: read, states 7 of the 8 things a reader expects (9.3 of 10)
- security.txt: not found (0 of 10)

## 7. Schema & documentation, 83 out of 100, up to 2.8 more on the total

Why it scored 83: Ten OpenAPI 3.0 files are public, 85 operations in all, 34 in the main file. The main file marks `x-api-key` as optional while the authentication guide requires it (23 of 25). llms.txt lists 216 pages with Markdown twins, plus a skill file and a documentation MCP server (10). All 34 operations in the main file carry a description, and the guides say when to use cached mode and when not to (14 of 20). Parameters are typed with defaults, the main file has 10 enums, and `SecurityResponses` is a free-form object (10 of 15). The main file has 116 example values and the error page lists codes with how to reproduce each. The spec says the authorise token lasts 30 minutes and the guide says 15 (11 of 15). The version is in the path (v3) and the changelog has monthly entries back to September 2021 (15).

The checklist (https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/#checklist-schema):

APIs and MCP servers.

- 25, a machine-readable contract (a public OpenAPI file or similar; for MCP, typed JSON Schema inputs on every tool).
- 10, llms.txt or Markdown docs served for agents.
- 0 to 20, descriptions that say what a tool is for, when to use it and when not to, read from the tool definitions in the source or the API reference.
- 0 to 15, typed inputs with enums, constraints and required fields, and no free-form JSON blobs.
- 0 to 15, examples and documented error responses.
- 15, versioning and a public changelog.

Models are read from the API reference, the OpenAPI file, llms.txt, the structured-output and tool-use docs and the model cards. Frameworks from docs a model can follow, typed interfaces, examples and the API reference.

## What we couldn't check

What we couldn't read counted as absent. Publishing it on a page a plain HTTP fetch can read (not only in a browser) lets the next check count it.

- The pricing page shows prices with a dollar sign and no currency. Whether they are Canadian or US dollars was not established, so `unitPrices` is empty
- The OpenAPI file says an authorise token is valid for 30 minutes and the guides say 15. Which is right was not tested
- unchecked: the Dashboard (signup at dashboard.flinks.com, key rotation, roles, any audit log), which sits behind a login
- unchecked: who registered fin.ag, the domain the API instances answer on, and flinksapp.com for Outbound
- unchecked: the SOC 2 Type II report and any ISO 27001 certificate, which are on request only
- unchecked: whether Flinks is registered with FINTRAC as a money services business. No registration number was found on the pages read
- No public DPA, sub-processor list with names, or deprecation policy was found on flinks.com or docs.flinks.com
- The lead was right about the vendor, the docs and the interface. It did not mention that the API answers on fin.ag, a second domain

## Weaknesses

- Live access needs a contract with a monthly minimum and a one-year term. The pricing page says there is no pay-as-you-go plan or self-serve trial
- The secret key, `x-api-key` and HMAC secret do not expire, and no scopes or rotation steps were found for the Connect API
- No rate-limit numbers are published, and `TOO_MANY_REQUESTS` is documented under HTTP 401 with no Retry-After
- status.flinks.com lists 77 incidents in the 90 days to 8 October 2026, 16 of them on Flinks' own components
- `/GetAccountsDetail` returns the whole 90 or 365 days of transactions in one payload with no pagination, and no official SDK was found

## What costs an agent a turn today

The notes we give agents before they call it. Each one is a workaround an agent shouldn't need.

- Call `/GenerateAuthorizeToken` with the secret key in `flinks-auth-key`, then pass the returned token to the Connect iframe or to `/Authorize`. The token is single-use and expires after 15 minutes.
- Send the account holder through Flinks Connect in a browser. The API alone cannot complete a first bank login, and sandbox iframes need `demo=true`.
- Store the `loginId`. Call `/Authorize` with it and `MostRecentCached: true` for a new `requestId` each session, because `/GetAccountsDetail` consumes the `requestId`.
- On a 202 from `/GetAccountsDetail`, poll `/GetAccountsDetailAsync` every 10 seconds for at most 30 minutes, or ask support to enable webhooks.
- Route each end user to the instance for their country. A `loginId` from the Canadian instance is not valid on the US one.

## When it's done

Send what changed and where it's published as a dispute (https://www.anchorterminal.com/builders/#disputes, or `POST https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/contact` with `"kind": "dispute"`). Disputes are answered in public, and the listing is checked again by the same checklist. Paying for an audit or a listing claim changes nothing here.