A budget cycle gives one API key a fixed amount to spend per day, week, or month. When the cycle rolls over, the budget is restored in full and the usage counter resets — no top-up, no wallet transfer, nobody waiting on an admin.
Issue one key per teammate, per agent, or per project and each gets an independent allowance. A key that runs out stops only itself, and comes back on its own at the next cycle.
Cycles never move money: they reset the key's spending cap, while your wallet balance stays the real constraint on what you can spend.