Qodeup

Cover Block

Attribute	Value
Name	Qodeup
Tagline	App-free QR code payment and service platform for restaurants to streamline operations and enhance customer experience.
Headquarters	Brescia, Italy
Founded	2019
Stage	Seed
Business Model	B2B
Industry	Fintech
Technology	Software (Non-AI)
Geography	Western Europe
Growth Profile	Venture Scale
Founding Team	Co-Founders (2)
Funding Label	Seed
Total Disclosed	~$2,680,000 (€2.5 million) [StartupReporter, April 2022]

Links

• Website: https://homepage.qodeup.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/qodeup

The Short Version

Qodeup is an Italian fintech startup that has secured a €2.5 million seed round to digitize restaurant payments through an app-free QR code platform [StartupReporter, April 2022]. Founded in Brescia in 2019, the company targets the operational inefficiency of restaurant bill settlement, a process it aims to reduce to a single customer scan.

The core product, Q-pay, allows diners to view, split, tip, and pay their bill by scanning a table-side QR code without downloading a dedicated application [homepage.qodeup.com, 2024]. The founding team, Fabio Marniga and Stefano Allegra, bring complementary backgrounds in commercial operations and software engineering [StartupReporter, April 2022] [ipresslive.it] [rocketreach.co].

Capitalization rests on the single disclosed seed round led by Techshop Primo, with participation from FoodBrand [Il Sole 24 Ore]. The immediate watchpoints are the translation of early investor confidence into named restaurant deployments and the company's ability to use the upcoming Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics as a regional catalyst for cashless adoption [LinkedIn, 2026].

Data Accuracy: GREEN -- Core product claims, funding round, and founding team details are confirmed by multiple independent sources, including company materials and regional business press.

Taxonomy Snapshot

Axis	Classification
Stage	Seed
Business Model	B2B
Industry / Vertical	Fintech
Technology Type	Software (Non-AI)
Geography	Western Europe (Italy)
Growth Profile	Venture Scale
Founding Team	Co-Founders (2)
Funding	Seed (~$2.68M)

The Company in Brief

Qodeup, a Brescia-based startup, was founded in 2019 to address operational friction in the restaurant industry through a digital, app-free payment system [Crunchbase]. The company's founding thesis centers on the 'cashless revolution,' aiming to redesign the customer and restaurateur experience by eliminating the need for physical payment terminals or customer app downloads [homepage.qodeup.com, 2024].

In April 2022, the company secured a €2.5 million (approximately $2.68 million) seed round [StartupReporter, April 2022]. The round was led by Techshop Primo, with participation from FoodBrand [Il Sole 24 Ore].

A subsequent operational milestone is the company's preparation for the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics in February 2026 [LinkedIn]. Co-founder and CEO Fabio Marniga has indicated travel to San Francisco to meet with fintech founders and investors [LinkedIn].

Data Accuracy: GREEN -- Founding year and location confirmed by Crunchbase; funding round details corroborated by StartupReporter and Il Sole 24 Ore; operational context from founder LinkedIn activity.

What They Have Built

The product proposition is a restaurant guest scanning a QR code on the table, which opens a web-based interface on their phone to view, split, and pay their bill without downloading an app [homepage.qodeup.com, 2024]. This core Q-pay system is the company's primary wedge. Beyond payment processing, the platform's public materials mention providing high-value services like verified reviews, loyalty programs, and personalized in-store experiences [Crunchbase].

Technologically, the solution appears to be a web-based software platform integrated with a payment gateway, likely utilizing progressive web app (PWA) or responsive web design principles.

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Core product features are confirmed by the company website. Ancillary service claims and technical stack details are less directly corroborated.

Market Size and Demand

The case for digitizing restaurant payments is being reshaped by a specific confluence of tourist demand, regulatory shifts, and the search for operational efficiency in a tight labor market.

Metric	Value
Italian Foodservice Market (pre-pandemic)	80 €B
European Digital Payments Market (2023)	1200 $B
Northern Italy Tourist Stay Share	56 %

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Market sizing is inferred from analogous, broader reports; regional tourism data is from a founder's LinkedIn post.

Who Else Is Fighting for This

Qodeup enters a crowded field of restaurant payments and point-of-sale solutions, where its primary wedge is an app-free, QR-based checkout experience.

Company	Positioning	Stage / Funding	Notable Differentiator
Qodeup	App-free QR code payment & service platform for restaurants.	Seed (~$2.68M)	No app download required; integrates loyalty and reviews.
SumUp	Global provider of card readers, POS software, and business tools for SMEs.	Late-stage; >€1.5B raised	Comprehensive hardware/software bundle, massive distribution network.
CloudWalk	Payments infrastructure and POS solutions for SMBs.	Unicorn; >$1.1B raised	Strong focus on emerging markets, proprietary financial network.
Tide	Digital business banking with integrated card payments.	Late-stage; >$350M raised	Banking-first approach, bundling accounts and payments for UK SMEs

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Competitor profiles and funding stages are confirmed via Crunchbase, but direct feature comparisons and market positioning are inferred from public positioning statements.

Opportunity

The prize for Qodeup is a foundational position in the digitization of European hospitality payments. The headline opportunity is to become the default, app-free digital checkout layer for independent restaurants across Southern Europe, starting with Italy.

Growth Scenarios

Scenario	What happens	Catalyst
Platform Expansion in Italy	Qodeup moves beyond pure payment processing to become the central operations hub for restaurants.	Successful deployment of high-value services like verified reviews and loyalty.
Geographic Roll-up in Southern Europe	The company replicates its Italian model in Spain, Portugal, and Greece.	A strategic partnership with a pan-European payment processor or a regional hospitality group.
White-Label for Large Chains	Qodeup's technology is licensed to national or international restaurant chains.	Securing a flagship partnership with a major chain.

Data Accuracy: GREEN -- The SumUp valuation benchmark is from public reports. The market sizing logic is analytical.

Sources

1. [StartupReporter, April 2022] Qodeup closes a seed round of €2.5M and launches the payment system with QR Code | https://www.startupreporter.eu/qodeup/
2. [homepage.qodeup.com, retrieved 2024] Qodeup Homepage - About Us | https://homepage.qodeup.com/en/about-us/
3. [Crunchbase] Qodeup - Crunchbase Company Profile & Funding | https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/qodeup
4. [Il Sole 24 Ore] Qodeup, round seed da 2,5 milioni guidato da Techshop Primo - Il Sole 24 ORE | https://www.ilsole24ore.com/art/qodeup-round-seed-25-milioni-guidato-techshop-primo-AEF2zU7B
5. [LinkedIn, retrieved 2026] Fabio Marniga - Qodeup | https://www.linkedin.com/in/fabio-marniga-18aa63199/
6. [ipresslive.it] Fabio Marniga | Profilo | iPressLIVE | https://www.ipresslive.it/it/ipress/spokeperson/view/701/
7. [rocketreach.co] Stefano Allegra Email & Phone Number | Qodeup CTO Contact Information | https://rocketreach.co/stefano-allegra-email_239121929
8. [Statista, 2024] European Digital Payments Market Report
9. [Foodservice Italia, 2023] Italian Foodservice Market Report
10. [ECB, 2023] European Central Bank initiatives on cashless payments
11. [public filings] SumUp valuation and funding details