# Satispay QR

> Source: https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/satispay-qr
> research date 2026-06-04 · extracted at 2026-10-06
> Publisher: Barcoder — encyclopedia of QR, barcode and payment-code standards

Specifications:
- [Satispay official site](https://satispay.com)
- [PPRO — Satispay integration guide](https://www.ppro.com/payment-methods/satispay/)

## Overview

**Satispay QR** is the proprietary QR-code payment format used by the **Satispay** fintech wallet. Unlike most European mobile wallets that build on the EMVCo Merchant-Presented Mode (MPM) specification, Satispay uses its own **opaque, proprietary QR payload** — only the Satispay app can decode and process its codes <sup>[1]</sup><sup>[2]</sup>.

As of 2025, Satispay operates in **Italy, Spain, France, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands** with **5.5M+ registered users** and **400K+ active merchants**, making it one of the largest non-bank digital wallets in Europe <sup>[3]</sup><sup>[4]</sup>. The app was founded in 2013 in Cuneo, Italy, by Giovanni Dalmasso, Luca Pinta, and Alessandro Brignone, and became a unicorn in 2022 with a €2.4B valuation <sup>[3]</sup><sup>[4]</sup>.

Satispay's QR codes are **dynamic for online payments** and **static for P2P transfers**, and the app integrates with **PagoPA** (Italy's public payments platform) for tax and utility bill payments <sup>[2]</sup>.

## History

**2013** — Satispay is founded in Cuneo, Italy, by Giovanni Dalmasso, Luca Pinta, and Alessandro Brignone <sup>[3]</sup>. The founding team previously worked at Google and McKinsey.

**2014** — Satispay launches in Italy as a mobile payment app focused on merchant QR payments and P2P transfers <sup>[3]</sup>.

**2016** — Satispay raises €4.6M Series A from TCV and other investors. The company begins expanding its merchant network across Italian cities <sup>[3]</sup>.

**2019** — Satispay reaches 1M users. The app adds P2P transfers, online payments, and integration with Italian public services (PagoPA) <sup>[3]</sup>.

**2020–2021** — Satispay expands to Spain and begins building its super-app features including savings products, loyalty rewards, and BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) <sup>[3]</sup>.

**2022** — Satispay becomes a unicorn with a €2.4B valuation after a funding round led by TCV. The company reaches 3.5M users and 200K merchants <sup>[3]</sup><sup>[4]</sup>.

**2023** — Satispay launches in France. The app adds investment products (Satispay Fondi) and a co-branded Mastercard debit card <sup>[3]</sup>.

**November 2024** — Satispay raises €60M in a Series D round, reaching a €3.6B valuation. The company adds Satispay Plus (BNPL) and Paga in 3 (instant savings) products <sup>[4]</sup>.

**2025** — Satispay reaches 5.5M users. The company generates €46M in revenue (2024) and employs 782 people, planning 400 additional hires <sup>[4]</sup>. Expansion to additional European markets continues.

## Technical specification

**QR format:** Satispay uses a **proprietary opaque payload** — unlike EMVCo MPM (which defines a standardized TLV structure), Satispay's QR codes encode an application-specific token that only the Satispay app can decode <sup>[2]</sup>. The payload format is not publicly documented.

**QR types:**
- **Merchant QR (static):** Printed at POS terminals; encoded with a unique merchant identifier and optional amount
- **Dynamic QR (online):** Generated per-transaction for e-commerce checkout
- **P2P QR (static):** Generated by one user for another; encodes a recipient token

**Payment flow:**
1. Customer scans merchant QR with Satispay app (or merchant scans customer's P2P QR)
2. Satispay app decodes the proprietary payload and displays transaction details
3. Customer confirms payment in-app (PIN or biometric authentication)
4. Settlement occurs between Satispay and the merchant's acquiring bank

**Security:**
- SCA (Strong Customer Authentication) compliant under PSD2
- Biometric authentication (fingerprint/Face ID)
- Tokenized bank account connections (no card details stored)
- Weekly budget controls for spending limits

**Pricing:**
- Merchants: 1% flat fee + €0.20 per transaction for in-person payments; 1.5% + €0.20 for e-commerce
- P2P transfers: free
- Customer account: free (direct bank account connection, no card needed)

## Use cases

**Retail POS payments** — The primary use case. Customers scan or are scanned at 400K+ merchants across Italy, Spain, France, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Satispay achieves a 91% conversion rate at POS, significantly higher than the industry average <sup>[2]</sup>.

**P2P transfers** — Users send money to friends and family using phone numbers as identifiers. Transfers are instant and free.

**E-commerce checkout** — Satispay integrates with online merchants as a payment option, offering dynamic QR codes for one-click checkout.

**Public service payments (Italy)** — Satispay integrates with **PagoPA** for tax payments (F24 forms), utility bills, and municipal fees — making it one of the few private wallets with direct PagoPA integration <sup>[2]</sup>.

**Mobile top-ups** — Users can recharge mobile phone credit directly through the app.

## Implementations

**Satispay app** (iOS/Android) — The primary implementation. Available on the App Store and Google Play. Features biometric authentication, budget controls, and direct bank account connections (no debit/credit card required).

**Satispay Plus** — BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) feature allowing purchases in installments.

**Satispay Fondi** — Investment product offering mutual fund portfolios.

**Satispay Mastercard** — Co-branded debit card linked to the Satispay account balance.

**PPRO integration** — Satispay is integrated via the PPRO payment gateway, enabling merchant acceptance beyond direct Satispay integrations <sup>[2]</sup>.

**No public GitHub repositories** — Satispay's QR payload is proprietary and closed-source. No encoder/decoder libraries are publicly available.

## Comparison

| Feature | Satispay QR | EMVCo MPM (Pix, DuitNow, etc.) | Bizum QR | Payconiq QR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **QR format** | Proprietary (opaque) | Standardized TLV (EMVCo) | Proprietary | EMVCo MPM |
| **Interoperable** | No (Satispay-only) | Yes (any EMVCo-compliant app) | No (Bizum-only) | No (Payconiq-only) |
| **Users** | 5.5M+ | Varies by country | 40M+ (ES) | 7M+ (BE/LU) |
| **P2P** | Yes | Varies | Yes | Yes |
| **E-commerce** | Yes | Varies | Limited | Limited |
| **Card integration** | Satispay Mastercard | N/A (bank/rail-dependent) | Yes (existing debit) | No |
| **BNPL** | Satispay Plus | N/A | No | No |
| **Investments** | Satispay Fondi | N/A | N/A | No |
| **PSP/EMI license** | Luxembourg CSSF | N/A (bank-dependent) | Bank consortium | Payconiq PB |

**When to choose Satispay:** When you want a super-app wallet with integrated banking features (investments, BNPL, card) and don't need interoperability with other wallets. Best for merchants who want high conversion rates (91%) and access to the Satispay user base.

**When to choose EMVCo MPM:** When you need interoperability across multiple wallet providers — the standard allows any EMVCo-compliant app to scan any EMVCo MPM QR code.

## Fun facts

- **91% conversion rate at POS** — Satispay claims a 91% payment conversion rate at merchant terminals, significantly higher than card payments (typically 60–80%), attributed to the frictionless one-tap confirmation flow <sup>[2]</sup>.

- **Founded in a small Italian city** — Satispay was founded in Cuneo, a city of ~55,000 people in northwest Italy — not in Milan or Rome, the typical fintech hubs <sup>[3]</sup>.

- **Ukrainian refugees** — Satispay offered free services and waived fees for Ukrainian refugees in Italy during the 2022–2024 conflict <sup>[3]</sup>.

## Status

**Active and expanding** <sup>[3]</sup><sup>[4]</sup>:
- 5.5M+ registered users across 5 countries
- 400K+ active merchants
- €46M revenue (2024)
- 782 employees, 400+ planned hires
- EMI licensed in Luxembourg (CSSF)
- PSD2/SCA compliant
- New product launches ongoing (Satispay Plus BNPL, Paga in 3, Fondi investments)
- Expanding merchant acceptance via PPRO integrations across 20+ EU countries

## Sources

[1]: `reports/countries/IT-italy.md` "Italy country report — Satispay section"
[2]: https://www.ppro.com/payment-methods/satispay/ "PPRO — Satispay integration guide"
[3]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satispay "Wikipedia — Satispay"
[4]: https://www.fintechmagazine.com/articles/satispay-unicorn-24-billion "FinTech Magazine — Satispay unicorn status"

## Deployments

Found in the following country reports (grep across `reports/countries/`):

- **IT** — [IT-italy.md](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/IT)