Freightos

Freightos operates a booking and payments platform for international freight,^[1] using a SaaS-Enabled Marketplace model.^[2] It also provides rate management and quoting software for freight forwarders and carriers through WebCargo, a subsidiary acquired in 2016^[3][4]

Freightos Ltd

Trade name	Freightos
Company type	Private
Traded as	Required
Industry	Logistics
Founded	January 1, 2012
Founder	Zvi Schreiber, CEO
Headquarters	Cayman Islands
Number of locations	Jerusalem, Ramallah, Barcelona
Products	Software-as-a-service: WebCargo Air, WebCargo AcceleRate
Services	Digital booking and payments platforms: WebCargo, freightos.com
Revenue	$21 million
Number of employees	350
Website	www.freightos.com

The freightos.com online freight marketplace, which as first piloted in July 2016, enables online instant freight quoting and booking, as well as shipment management.^[5] The platform is also used by partners, like Alibaba.com.^[6]

The company went public on Nasdaq with ticker symbol CRGO January 2023 by combining with the SPAC Gesher 1.^[7][8]

History

Freightos was founded in January 2012 by Zvi Schreiber. Schreiber has previously founded and managed other start-up companies including companies acquired by IBM and GE. The first beta customers of Freightos went live in October 2012 and the SaaS service was commercially launched in March 2013. Freightos raised initial funding from OurCrowd.^[9] Freightos is the trading name of Freightos Limited a Cayman Islands company (previously named Tradeos Limited, a Hong Kong company). Freightos has been a member of the Airforwarders Association since January 2013^[10] and the International Air Cargo Association since 2021.

In August 2016, Freightos bought Spanish startup WebCargoNet,^[11] which later was marketed at WebCargo by Freightos. A similar, India-based air cargo rate management product, Air Freight Bazaar, was acquired by the company in 2019.^[12]

In March 2017, Freightos raised $25 million in Series B funding led by GE Ventures bringing the company's total funding to $50 million.

In April 2018, Freightos launched a daily containerized index, called the Freightos Baltic Exchange Index.^[13] This is widely used as an indicator of global container prices.^[14][15] In 2021 Freightos launched the Freightos Air Index (FAX) of air cargo rates.

In September 2018, Freightos announced a $44.4 million dollar Series C funding round, led by the Singapore Exchange and together with previous investors, including Aleph and More VC.^[16] During the interview, Freightos founder Zvi Schreiber also mentioned the company's aspirations to connect carriers, like airlines, directly to forwarders and shippers.

In January 2021, Freightos announced the acquisition of 7L Freight, an air and trucking rate management software solution with a core customer base in the United States.^[17]

freightos.com overview

On July 26, 2016, Freightos launched one of the world's first online marketplaces for international freight,^[18] providing instant comparison, booking, and management of freight services from multiple logistics providers.^[19][20] Over time, a number of partnerships related to this endeavor were announced, including direct booking with CMA CGM,^[21] a top-five ocean liner.^[22]

WebCargo main features

WebCargo provides rate management including features for uploading freight pricing contracts in Excel, a database for freight rates, and a module for automatic freight and quotations on the Web. The quotation algorithm includes routing of door-to-door freight services.^[23] This supports exchanging quote requests and quotes between freight forwarders and their agents.

Since 2018, cargo airlines began to offer connectivity for air cargo pricing and booking. During these years WebCargo changed its business model to be primarily a booking platform, and the company claims to be the largest platform with which freight forwarders digitally book air cargo services with airlines. In July 2018, Lufthansa became the first airline to offer direct rates for forwarders on the platform.^[24] This was followed by additional airlines, including Air France–KLM in April 2019,^[25] IAG Cargo (British Airways and Iberia) in July 2019,^[26] SAS Cargo in November 2019,^[27] Etihad in February 2020,^[28] AirBridgeCargo in June 2020,^[29] Qatar Airways in January 2021,^[30] TAP Air Portugal Cargo in January 2021.^[31]

See also

• Zvi Schreiber

References

1. Magee, Christine (9 September 2015). "With A Fresh $14M, Freightos Wants To Power The Global Freight Industry". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
2. "How SaaS is bringing B2B marketplaces back". VentureBeat. 16 April 2016. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
3. "Qatar Airways to offer capacity through WebCargo digital platform". FreightWaves. 2021-01-20. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
4. "Hellmann completes Freightos AcceleRate rollout - Asia Cargo News". www.asiacargonews.com. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
5. "Freightos aims to make shipping easier, cheaper". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
6. "Alibaba adds financing tools and online trade shows for US merchants". TechCrunch. 2 June 2020. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
7. Leach, Kamaron (2022-05-31). "FedEx-Backed Freightos to Go Public in Merger With Gesher SPAC". Bloomberg.
8. Berger, Paul (26 January 2023). "Shipping Platform Freightos Goes Public in SPAC Deal". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
9. Abel, Shira (June 2013). "FreightOS: Bringing sexy back to the freight industry". TheNextWeb
10. Airforwarders Association Member, January 2013
11. Phillips, Erica E. (2016-08-31). "Freightos Buys Air-Cargo Rival to Boost Online Marketplace". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2016-09-08.
12. Muir, James (11 April 2019). "WebCargo acquires Air Freight Bazaar". Air Cargo Week. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
13. "Baltic Exchange and Freightos to launch global container freight index". www.insidemarine.com. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
14. "Container-shipping costs have surged in recent months". The Economist. 2021-02-11. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
15. "Container freight rates soar on consumer goods boom, supply chain kinks". Reuters. Reuters. 2020-11-18. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
16. "Logistics startup Freightos raises $44.4M Series C led by Singapore Exchange". TechCrunch. 17 September 2018. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
17. "Freightos Group acquires 7L Freight, expanding digital air cargo product". FreightWaves. 2022-01-17. Retrieved 2022-05-02.
18. "SimpliShip". American Shipper.
19. "Introducing the Freightos Marketplace - Freightos". Freightos. 2016-07-26. Retrieved 2016-07-28.
20. Johnson, Eric (July 27, 2016). "Freightos launches freight rate marketplace". American Shipper. Retrieved 2016-07-28.
21. "Business is Good but Cost Cuts are Coming at CMA CGM". The Maritime Executive. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
22. "PublicTop100". alphaliner.axsmarine.com. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
23. American Journal of Transportation, 5 April 2013
24. "Instant, Online Air Cargo eBooking Unveiled In Major Lufthansa Cargo-Freightos Launch - Lufthansa Cargo". lufthansa-cargo.com. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
25. "Dynamic pricing arrives in air cargo with AF KLM and WebCargo". Air Cargo News. 2019-04-23. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
26. "IAG Cargo links API to Freightos WebCargo to offer dynamic pricing | Air Cargo World". 2019-06-04. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
27. "SAS Cargo Group to Launch Full Digital Air Cargo Capability with WebCargo". CAAS /// Cargo Airports & Airline Services. 2019-11-26. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
28. Graham, James (10 February 2020). "Etihad Cargo partners with Webcargo By Freightos to expand reach". Air Cargo Week. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
29. "Qatar Airways Cargo adds digital booking through WebCargo | Air Cargo World". 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
30. "Qatar Airways Cargo adds digital booking through WebCargo | Air Cargo World". 2021-01-21. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
31. "TAP Air Cargo to offer freight forwarders real-time e-bookings on WebCargo". Stat Times. 13 January 2021. Retrieved 2021-03-24.

External links

• Braun, Ted (May 2013). "Shipper Drives Change". Air cargo news
• "FreightOS Announces Better Automation For Global Freight", http://www.manufacturing.net, 4 April 2013