In 2025, HESS Cash Systems can look back on an impressive history. 140 years of tradition, expertise, innovation and customer focus. Founded in 1885, the company has developed from a small shoemaking supplies business into an internationally active technology leader in the field of cash automation and software solutions for banks, public authorities, energy suppliers, libraries and retailers.
The company history of HESS is characterized by technical progress and constant change and begins in 1885 in Frankfurt am Main, when shoemaker Karl Scholl founds a trading company for shoemaking supplies.
In the 1920s, the systematic expansion of the product portfolio began and, in addition to tools for the shoemaking trade, numerous special devices were developed that were needed for the modern shoe gluing process. Production is professionalized and production capacities grow steadily.
In the years that followed, the company faced major challenges - like many German companies at the time. The Second World War brings restrictions, but also technical changes. After the war, reconstruction succeeds with great commitment and vision.
At the end of the 1950s, shoe shine machines are equipped with coin validators for the first time. This marks the start of a new chapter in the company's history: coin processing and self-service. These early cash processing systems lay the foundation for the later focus on cash-related automation technology. The shoe shine machines are joined by further self-service machines in the mid-1960s. The product range now extends from coffee and drinks machines to newspaper, ticket and food vending machines.
At the end of the 1980s, HESS once again entered new territory: with the MULTICHANGE coin changer, an unprecedented system for dispensing coin rolls, the company established itself in the banking world. This phase marked the transition from a traditional machine manufacturer to a provider of specialized banking technology, which would become the company's core competence in the following decades.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the company played a key role in the development of modern cash supply and disposal systems and, with its entry into the banking world, HESS was also active in the healthcare sector. With hospital billing machines and patient telephone billing systems, the company entered the field of automated teller machines.
Today, HESS Cash Systems is part of the Gauselmann Group (now MERKUR.COM AG) and operates successfully internationally. The company supplies customized solutions to customers in over 40 countries. These include banks, savings banks, public administrations, retailers and institutions with high requirements for secure, efficient and user-friendly payment systems.
All systems are developed and manufactured in Germany to the highest standards of quality, security and ergonomics.
In addition to hardware, software expertise is at the heart of today's innovation strategy. With solutions such as MultiPay Advance, HESS offers a powerful platform for processing a wide range of payment methods, from cash to EC and credit cards to digital payment methods. The modular architecture enables seamless integration into existing IT infrastructures and at the same time offers maximum flexibility for individual customer requirements.
Another forward-looking product is BillEVe. With BillEVe, managing and billing the electricity consumption of employees' private e-vehicles, the vehicle fleet and visitors at company charging stations has never been easier. The innovative software solution automatically synchronizes the electricity consumption accounts on a monthly basis and compares the data with the payroll accounting system.
140 years of HESS Cash Systems means not only looking back, but above all looking forward. The company remains true to its core values: innovative spirit, technical excellence and partnership. With a strong team, a clear focus on customer benefits and the combination of high-performance hardware and intelligent software, HESS is ideally equipped for the future.
We would like to thank all our customers, partners and employees for the trust they have placed in our company - yesterday, today and tomorrow.
