Freightos founder Zvi Schreiber is escalating his campaign to change the company’s leadership and strategic direction, bringing his dispute with the digital freight-booking platform’s board to a contested shareholder vote. The disagreement centres on corporate governance, financial performance and the company’s decision to prioritise software and data products over the growth of its digital marketplace.
The company’s board has agreed to submit Schreiber’s proposals to shareholders at its annual general meeting in December, although the meeting date remains subject to confirmation.
Schreiber has put forward three resolutions. The first seeks to remove Chairman Udo Lange as a director. The second calls for annual director elections instead of the existing three-year terms. The third is a non-binding recommendation to appoint a chairman with experience scaling growth-stage technology companies and to refocus Freightos on accelerating platform growth.
However, Schreiber claims the company has refused to put his strategic recommendation to a shareholder vote. Freightos did not directly address that allegation in its response to FreightWaves.
The proposals carry different implications for the company’s governance. Incorporated in the Cayman Islands, Freightos currently operates a staggered board structure under which directors serve three-year terms, with different classes standing for election at successive annual general meetings. Schreiber’s special resolution would shorten those terms to one year, requiring an amendment to the company’s articles of association.
He argues that more frequent elections would strengthen accountability and give shareholders greater influence over the company’s leadership.
Shareholder returns fuel criticism of the board
Schreiber believes Lange should be held responsible for Freightos’ performance, particularly when its share-price trajectory is compared with the broader market.
“This isn’t personal, but the board has gone in the wrong direction and delivered very bad results for shareholders, and the chairman should take responsibility,” Schreiber said.
He also maintains that annual elections would allow investors to assess directors’ performance more regularly rather than waiting for the end of their current mandates.
“That way, the directors are more answerable to shareholders, and we get to decide every year if we’re pleased with the job they’re doing or not,” he said.
Schreiber founded Freightos in 2012 and agreed to step down as chief executive effective January 31, 2026. He subsequently resigned from the board entirely on February 28. Chief Financial Officer Pablo Pinillos took over as CEO following his departure, while Schreiber retained an approximately 6% stake in the company.
The founder says his decision to leave the board was driven primarily by its choice to prioritise the Solutions business, which sells software and data products, over the digital booking platform. He also objected to the slower pace of growth associated with that direction.
In his view, the decision carries additional risks as artificial intelligence makes software products easier to develop and reproduce.
“To bet that company on solutions first, just when AI is really threatening it, I thought that was a very bad decision,” Schreiber said.
A campaign following months of disagreement
The shareholder initiative comes after roughly three months of correspondence and legal pressure from Schreiber. He says he initially avoided publicly challenging the board because he wanted to give management sufficient time to demonstrate that its strategy could deliver results.
“To launch a public campaign against the board? That needs data,” he said. “So I wanted to give them at least six months to prove themselves.”
The company’s stock performance has since provided a central element of his argument. Over the past year, Freightos shares have declined by approximately 78%, while the Nasdaq Composite has gained around 16%, according to historical index data from Nasdaq. Although the comparison illustrates the gap in shareholder returns, it does not independently establish the reasons behind Freightos’ performance.
The company’s second-quarter results, released in August, further reinforced Schreiber’s concerns. Revenue increased by 3% year over year, but Solutions revenue fell by 4%. He said the figures led him to conclude that the current strategy was not producing the outcomes he expected.
Schreiber has since launched GrowCRGO, an initiative dedicated to his campaign for changes at Freightos.
“I’m proud of Freightos and very passionate about it and very sad when I see it not being managed in the way which I think is right,” he said.
Financial results show divergent business paths
Freightos operates a digital platform that connects airlines, freight forwarders and shippers to price, book and manage international freight shipments. In addition to the marketplace, the company offers software and data products for logistics businesses.
In the second quarter 2026, the results showed a disparity of performance between the two activities.
Freightos reported quarterly revenue of $7.7 million, up 3% year-over-year. Platform revenue rose 19% to $2.9 million and Solutions revenue fell 4% to $4.8 million.
Growth in solutions slowed after a stronger 2025 when revenue from the business grew 27% to $19.6 million. Solutions made up some 62% of Freightos’ revenue that year, with the Platform business making up the remaining 38%.
Despite increased quarterly revenue, Freightos is not yet adjusted EBITDA profitable. The company reported an adjusted EBITDA loss of $2 million in the second quarter of 2026, compared with a loss of $2.9 million in the year-ago period.
The numbers support the case for investing more resources in the digital marketplace, which Schreiber views as the company’s best growth opportunity over the long term.
“The two principles I’ve always stood for are to grow as fast as you can and to grow primarily the platform, the transactional business. “That is where the future lies,” he said.
Artificial intelligence widens the strategic gap
The tiff at Freightos is emblematic of a larger question for tech providers across the freight and logistics sector: how artificial intelligence could change the competitive value of software and digital marketplaces.
AI, Schreiber says, can cut down the time and resources needed to replicate traditional software products, which might erode the benefits of companies that have business models heavily dependent on selling applications and data services.
Digital freight marketplaces are not just about software, however. They also benefit from relationships with airlines, access to freight capacity and networks that connect different players in the supply chain.
“AI is able to write software in minutes but AI is unable to go out and negotiate contracts with airlines around the world and build a network,” said Schreiber.
That distinction is especially true for Freightos, whose business is a combination of a transactional booking platform and software and data products for logistics companies. AI could improve pricing capabilities and streamline booking processes, but could also make it easier for competitors to build applications for freight forwarders and shippers.
The longer term results are not known. AI may improve the services of Freightos’ marketplace, enhancing its competitive position, but at the same time putting more pressure on its software business as it becomes easier to develop alternative products.
Freightos defends its focus on execution
In its response to FreightWaves, Freightos said its board and management were aware of Schreiber’s communications and shareholder proposals. The company added that the proposals would be assessed in accordance with its governing documents and the directors’ fiduciary responsibilities.
“The Board and management remain fully focused on executing our operational strategy and delivering long-term value for all Freightos shareholders,” the company said in a statement.
Freightos did not directly respond to Schreiber’s criticism of its growth strategy, shareholder returns or approach to artificial intelligence.
The December shareholder meeting will therefore provide an important test of investor support for the founder’s proposed governance changes and his call to reconsider the company’s strategic priorities.
Why the dispute matters for freight technology
The confrontation highlights a growing strategic challenge for freight technology companies as AI capabilities advance. Businesses must determine whether their strongest long-term advantages lie in software products that competitors may increasingly be able to replicate, or in digital marketplaces built around industry relationships, carrier access and booking networks.
For Freightos, the outcome of the shareholder vote could influence both its governance structure and the debate over how best to balance its Platform and Solutions businesses. The company must continue expanding revenue while working towards profitability, and investors will have to decide whether Schreiber’s proposed changes offer a more convincing path towards sustainable growth.
