Israeli freight booking and payment platform Freightos (Nasdaq: CRGO) has completed its special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger with Gesher I Acquisition Corp. and began trading on Nasdaq last Thursday. The company's share price ended trading on Friday down 21.83% at $8.20, giving a market cap of $390.5 million.
Freightos raised over $80 million in capital through the merger, exceeding the previously announced committed capital. This includes $10 million from Qatar Airways and $60 million from M&G Investments and The Prudential Assurance Co. Existing shareholders in Freightos include SGX Group (the Singapore Exchange Limited), a subsidiary of FedEx Corporation, Qatar Airways, IAG Cargo, the cargo division of International Airlines Group (which includes British Airways and Iberia), LATAM Airlines Group, Bob Mylod (Chairman of Booking Holdings) and leading financial investors such as Aleph and MoreVC. According to PitchBook, Freightos raised $105 million prior to the SPAC merger. Freightos management, along with its largest shareholders, have signed 2-year lockup agreements, subject to periodic releases and certain exceptions.
Freightos is a Jerusalem based startup, founded by CEO Zvi Schreiber in 2012, which deals with freight shipping. The company, which also has offices in Barcelona, has developed a system for automatic pricing of shipping freight by sea, whose value has risen over the past few years due to the supply chain crisis, which stems in part from the lack of shipping containers, ships and truck drivers. The company serves as a digital market allowing the comparison of shipping prices, ordering shipping services and tracking and managing their progress.
During 2022, the company facilitated nearly 700,000 digital booking transactions, representing over $600 million in Gross Booking Value. This represents 54% growth in transactions compared to 2021.
The capital raised from the business combination will be invested in further scaling the business, to increase transaction growth and revenue and to further develop the technology stack, to drive additional value for customers, and improve margins. Schreiber said, "Supply chains are fragile, and the last two years demonstrated how valuable Freightos is and can be. The company had an outstanding 2022, despite declining freight rates and volumes, demonstrating the power of digitalizing one of the last large offline industries. We are delighted to have constructive partnerships with an increasing number of carriers, freight forwarders and importers/exporters who are committed to digitalization."
He added, "Going public through the combination with Gesher and raising capital is designed to fuel our aggressive efforts to scale our booking and payment platform and enhance our leadership position. This day represents new opportunities for the Freightos team around the world, whose diligence and dedication have made Freightos what it is today."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on January 29, 2023.
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