“At product launch, 1,000 caregivers at Caritas Vienna started using our Pliant cards.”
How Pflegenavi and Pliant developed a payment solution that replaces cash processes in the social care sector.
Pflegenavi is digitizing the management of client funds in the care and social services sector. Together with Pliant, the company has developed a card-based payment solution that replaces cash processes. CEO Patrick Reinfeld shares insights into the partnership with Pliant.
Pflegenavi is an Austrian healthcare fintech that has been digitally supporting the care and social services sector since 2020. The platform was designed specifically for the needs of care facilities, staff, and families, ensuring secure and transparent management of client funds. At the heart of the solution is a wallet-based account management system. Pflegenavi was founded by brothers Patrick and Markus Reinfeld together with tech expert Rainer Schuster.
PIANQA – the smart payment card solution from Pflegenavi
Card management: Block cards, adjust limits, or top up balances – all digitally.
Roles & permissions: Administrators, caregivers, residents, and relatives get exactly the access they need.
Seamless integration: Connected via API directly to Pflegenavi apps and wallets.
Audit-proof documentation: All expenses are visible in real time, transparent, traceable, and compliant.
Challenge: When Cash Becomes a Problem
For years, payments in the social care sector were handled almost entirely in cash. In residential care facilities, money was kept in safes, while in home care, staff carried cash envelopes for their clients. Every expense had to be logged by hand, receipts collected, and all transactions reconciled at the end of the day.
The consequences for everyone involved:
- Facilities: No real-time overview and a heavy administrative burden to document and provide proof to families or legal guardians.
- Staff: Extra responsibility carrying cash, manual receipt tracking, and the risk of mistakes.
- Residents and families: Monthly paper-based statements and verbal updates provided little transparency.
Pflegenavi needed a payment solution that, from day one, would guarantee secure, practical, and user-friendly processes to enable a full shift away from cash.
Solution: API Integration of the Card Platform and Pflegenavi Apps
Pflegenavi and Pliant developed a card-based solution that meets all the key requirements for cashless client fund management. Through the API, Pliant’s card platform is directly connected to Pflegenavi’s apps and wallet.
The digital card management system makes it possible to issue new cards, set spending limits, or assign them to new clients instantly. Facilities can choose between physical cards or virtual cards that can be created in seconds and used right away.
All payments are visible in real time and automatically assigned to the correct client. Care staff receive push notifications and can upload receipts directly in the app, creating a seamless, audit-proof record.
Together with Pliant, Pflegenavi also defined specific user roles. Administrators, caregivers, residents, and legal guardians each have the rights and functions they need, with full transparency available at any time in the apps.
“Within just a few weeks, we connected the payment cards to our apps via API. A clear role structure was critical for us since caregivers, administrators, and families all have different needs. Today, cards and app interfaces are fully branded in Pflegenavi’s design and directly connected to our platform.”
Patrick Reinfeld, CEO and Co-Founder of Pflegenavi
Result: Transparency, Compliance, and New Customers
With PIANQA, Pflegenavi has digitized the cash-handling processes of social care organizations. This reduces manual workload, relieves staff from the responsibility of managing cash, and ensures audit-proof processes for facilities. Families and legal guardians always know exactly what expenses have been made and how much balance remains.
For Pflegenavi, the card solution reflects the core of what the company wants to achieve: digital innovation, simpler accounting, transparent tracking, and legally compliant financial processes in the care sector. With PIANQA, Pflegenavi has been able to win major partners such as Caritas Vienna and the Samaritan Association, proving that digital processes can gain acceptance even in a sector long dominated by cash.
“With Pliant’s card platform and our wallets, we enable the secure and digital management of client funds. For the product launch, we were able to bring on a major partner like Caritas Vienna. Having over 1,000 employees there already working with our solution shows how scalable a modern payment system can be. For us, it’s an important milestone, and the starting point to expand into other areas and countries.”
Patrick Reinfeld, CEO and Co-Founder of Pflegenavi
