luca launches new payment service “luca Pay” for restaurants and deletes all user data from the pandemic

Berlin, May 04, 2022. luca has begun digitizing gastronomy: As of today, guests can make secure and cashless payments on their smartphones using the luca app at the first test restaurants in Hamburg, Berlin and Rostock. The Germany-wide rollout is planned by the end of June.

Before launching the new service, luca completely deleted all user data that had been stored in Luca's system in encrypted form in connection with contact tracing during the pandemic. These are now only stored and visible locally on users' smartphones, to which Luca has no access.

Patrick Hennig, CEO and founder of luca, says: “Germany is still lagging behind when it comes to digital payments. We want to change that. In just three months, we developed Luca Pay, a new product with which we make the customer experience in the catering industry more digital and efficient. With luca Pay, guests and service staff save valuable time during every payment process. Other digital services are under development and will follow soon. Our goal is the complete digitization of the customer journey, from reservation to ordering to payment, and beyond Germany. ”

With luca Pay, guests can simply and conveniently scan a typical Luca-style QR code and pay the bill. Luca's new payment function offers operators of restaurants, cafés and hotels as well as tour operators transaction fees that are well below the market average and therefore the prices of major, often American payment service providers. The payment service does not require basic fees or new devices. Similar to mobility apps, luca Pay has a default setting for tips. Other services such as table reservations and the connection of common cash register systems are planned for the current year.

Since its founding, luca has been concerned with finding the best solutions to make social life easier in culture and gastronomy. During the corona pandemic, Luca, as a digital tool for contact tracing, has helped to abolish the paperwork almost across Germany in just a few months. Luca is now clearly focused on supporting the catering and event industry, which are particularly affected by the economic consequences of the pandemic, with efficient tools.

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