What DAKOSY does

DAKOSY Datenkommunikationssystem AG is a Hamburg-based IT and software service provider for the transportation and logistics sectors, operating since 1982 as the founding Port Community System (PCS) provider for the Port of Hamburg. The company serves more than 3,000 companies across Europe through three product pillars: Cargo Communications (port and airport community platforms including GermanPorts, allivate, IMP, eBooking, GEGIS), Customs (ZODIAK GE covering German ATLAS, Swiss e-dec/Passar, EMCS, ICS/ICS2), and Logistics (DAKOSY GE TMS plus UNIKAT GE for intermodal rail/truck handling and DESTANDO mobile driver app). Technology is Java-based with deep EDI/XML integration across AC03 (rail), Port Order XML, HDS/GM01 interfaces, and bilateral connectors to TOP 10 global container shipping lines via a single EDI interface.

Revenue is generated primarily through subscription SaaS licensing for DAKOSY GE and ZODIAK GE, recurring EDI services from the company-operated data centers, and managed services for trading houses, freight forwarders, shipping lines, and authorities. Go-to-market is enterprise direct sales supported by four regional offices in Hamburg, Bonn, Frankfurt, and Konstanz; the DESTANDO app drives self-service adoption among truck drivers. Customer concentration is spread across freight forwarders, customs brokers, container/rail operators, shipping companies, and industrial trading houses, with named reference customers including Gebrüder Weiss, DACHSER, VAUDE, and ALS Customs Services.

Notable strategic posture includes regulatory embeddedness (BAZG steering committee membership for Swiss Passar migration), a managed migration from legacy HDS/GM01 to Port Order XML, release cadence of multiple major software updates per year (2025.2, 2025.3, 2026.1), and active ecosystem expansion into adjacent areas such as airport slot booking, CBAM compliance tooling, and cross-border UK-Germany-Switzerland customs digitalization via the June 2026 iCustoms partnership. The company is an independent German Aktiengesellschaft (AG) with no disclosed parent company, external funding rounds, or M&A activity.

Name

DAKOSY

Legal name

DAKOSY Datenkommunikationssystem AG

Website

https://dakosy.de

Company type

Public

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

DAKOSY is a Hamburg-based IT and software provider serving 3,000+ European logistics companies with port community systems, customs software (ZODIAK GE), transport management (DAKOSY GE), and intermodal handling (UNIKAT GE), operating as the founding Port Community System for Hamburg since 1982.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Logistics Software

NAICS

Support Activities for Transportation (488), Support Activities for Water Transportation (4883)

SIC

Arrangement Of Transportation Of Freight & Cargo (4731)

akta.pro primary industry

Port Billing, Tariff, Invoicing & Revenue Management Systems (TLAHAOAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Customs Declaration & Filing (Import/Export Entry) Platforms (TLAEAOAA), Export Customs Clearance (Export Declarations & AES/EEI) (TLACAFAB)

Keywords

• Port community systems
• Customs clearance software
• Transport management software
• Logistics EDI services
• Intermodal transport software

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Software Licensing (SaaS): DAKOSY GE and ZODIAK GE offered as SaaS solutions with subscription-based pricing. Customers are quickly and cost-effectively set up to start transport processing.
2. EDI Services: Electronic Data Interchange services for electronic business communication. More than 3,000 companies across Europe use DAKOSY's state-of-the-art data centers for their electronic business communication.
3. Data Center Services: IT and data centre services supporting electronic business communication for trading houses, branded companies, industrial enterprises, freight forwarders, shipping companies, liner agents, carriers and authorities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

DAKOSY develops and operates modular software for cargo communications, customs clearance and logistics. Its flagship products are the Java-based DAKOSY GE transport management system for forwarding, the ZODIAK GE customs declaration suite for ATLAS Germany, Swiss e-dec/Passar, EMCS, ICS and ICS2, and the UNIKAT GE platform for intermodal container rail and truck handling. The company also runs EDI gateways connecting 3,000+ European logistics companies to shipping lines, ports, airports and customs authorities, and provides related data-center and managed services.

Product overview

DAKOSY offers a modular software portfolio organized into three solution areas: Cargo Communications (port and airport community platforms), Customs (customs declaration software), and Logistics (transport management and intermodal solutions). The core products are ZODIAK GE (customs software for German ATLAS, Swiss e-dec/Passar, EMCS, ICS/ICS2 procedures) and DAKOSY GE (Java-based TMS for forwarding with modules for sea freight, air freight, customs, intermodal, invoicing, and statistics). UNIKAT GE serves as the intermodal hub, supporting container rail transport management via AC03 interface and truck handling, with DESTANDO providing a mobile app for driver status updates. The ecosystem also includes allivate for airport slot management, eBooking for carrier EDI connectivity, GermanPorts for cross-port release order management, and Drag&Map for Excel-based data integration. Products operate as standalone solutions or integrate with each other; ZODIAK GE is available both independently and embedded within DAKOSY GE.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ZODIAK GE: Customs software solution for ATLAS Germany, e-dec/Passar Switzerland, EMCS, ICS, and ICS2 procedures.
• DAKOSY GE
• UNIKAT GE
• DESTANDO
• allivate
• German Ports
• IMP (Import Management Platform)
• Drag&Map
• ImpalaID

Products and services

• DAKOSY GE Java-based Transport Management System (TMS) for national and international forwarding, offered as SaaS with modular capabilities for sea freight, air freight, customs clearance, intermodal transport, invoicing and statistics. Used by over 400 customers in sea and air cargo logistics.
• ZODIAK GE Integrated customs software supporting ATLAS Germany, Swiss e-dec/Passar, EMCS, ICS, ICS2 and additional customs procedures. Available standalone or embedded within DAKOSY GE; serves 1,750 customs customers (up from 1,050 in 2020).
• UNIKAT GE Integrated software for forwarders, rail operators and container operators to handle container rail transports or outsource them in Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Wilhelmshaven and Rotterdam, using the AC03 interface as quasi-standard for seaport hinterland communication.
• UNIKAT GE Truck Truck handling solution for container transport at Hamburg and Bremerhaven seaports, providing transport pre-announcements and slot bookings, with native integration to the Destando driver app.
• DESTANDO Free status app for Android and iOS that gives truck drivers and transport companies real-time tour tracking, status updates, photo documentation and live order data exchange, with direct integration into UNIKAT GE.
• allivate Airport cargo community system providing slot booking and digital collaboration for air cargo operations at German airports, including the FAIR@Link slot-booking service for Frankfurt Airport.
• eBooking Electronic booking platform that lets forwarders submit container booking requests to TOP 10 global container shipping lines via a single EDI interface and receive booking confirmations, depot information and arrival notifications electronically.
• Import Management Platform (IMP) Hamburg port community platform providing container import status information, delivery notifications and disposal management for import logistics; directly queryable from UNIKAT GE.
• GermanPorts Cross-port platform providing Secure Release Order (SRO) management across Hamburg, Bremerhaven and Wilhelmshaven, enabling digital rights transfer for container pick-up; integrated into DAKOSY GE via DeepLink.
• CargoSoft Forwarding software sub-brand under the DAKOSY product family providing freight forwarding operations management, related to e-logistic solutions alongside DAKOSY.

Quantifiable outcome

• 3,000+ companies use DAKOSY's data centers for electronic business communication
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability1 record

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• iCustomscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026DAKOSY and iCustoms cooperation for cross-border customs digitization. Partnership enables faster and more efficient customs clearance between Great Britain, Germany, and Switzerland. Intelligent interfaces between platforms automate export and import data processing, enabling seamless digital customs processes. Technical integration is already underway with further product solutions to follow.
• Ocean Network Express (ONE)coreTechnology or IntegrationONE began receiving forwarder bookings through DAKOSY's eBooking platform since February 2018. Platform enables electronic transmission of booking confirmations, depot information, and arrival notifications.
• Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL)coreTechnology or IntegrationOOCL began receiving forwarder bookings through DAKOSY's eBooking platform since February 2018.
• SACO ShippingcoreTechnology or IntegrationSACO Shipping (neutral NVOCC service provider) began receiving forwarder bookings through DAKOSY's eBooking platform since February 2018.
• Swiss Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (BAZG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDAKOSY is member of steering committee established by BAZG for Switzerland's transition from e-dec to Passar customs system. DAKOSY actively participates in implementation planning and ZODIAK GE software supports parallel operation of both systems.
• allivatecoreTechnology or IntegrationDAKOSY provides Cargo Communications for airports through allivate platform, including slot booking for Frankfurt Airport (FAIR@Link) and other German airports.
• German PortscoreTechnology or IntegrationGerman Ports platform provides Secure Release Order functionality across Hamburg, Bremerhaven, and Wilhelmshaven. DAKOSY GE integrates with German Ports via DeepLink.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Portbase: Portbase operates the Port Community System for the Port of Rotterdam and Amsterdam, the most direct comparable to DAKOSY's Hamburg PCS. Both serve as neutral, multi-stakeholder digital platforms coordinating port calls, customs, and hinterland logistics between carriers, forwarders, and authorities in major European container ports.
• CargoSmart: CargoSmart provides a global container shipping visibility and EDI platform connecting carriers and shippers, directly comparable to DAKOSY's eBooking and port community systems. As the dominant Asia-based shipping EDI network, it competes with DAKOSY for the same TOP 10 global container line integrations.
• AEB (AEB SE): AEB is a German provider of customs, trade compliance, and forwarding software, the closest head-to-head competitor to DAKOSY's ZODIAK GE in the DACH market. Both serve freight forwarders and customs brokers with comparable ATLAS, EMCS, and export controls functionality.
• MIC Customs Solutions: MIC Customs Solutions is a German customs software vendor specializing in ATLAS-based declaration and trade compliance workflows. It directly competes with ZODIAK GE for German customs broker and freight forwarder customers.
• Tesisquare: Tesisquare is an Italian provider of port community systems, customs platforms, and TMS software, comparable to DAKOSY's PCS and customs portfolio but serving Mediterranean ports. It represents both a regional peer and a potential partner/competitor in cross-border Mediterranean trade lanes.
• Riege Software: Riege Software is a German forwarding TMS vendor serving air and sea freight forwarders, comparable to DAKOSY GE. Both target the German and European freight forwarding mid-market with modular cloud TMS offerings.

Broad incumbents

• Descartes Systems Group: Descartes is a global trade compliance, customs, and logistics technology provider with a broad portfolio overlapping DAKOSY's ZODIAK GE and eBooking offerings. As a much larger, publicly listed incumbent, Descartes represents the strategic global competitor for European customs and trade compliance software.
• WiseTech Global (CargoWise): WiseTech's CargoWise platform is a leading global TMS used by freight forwarders worldwide, competing directly with DAKOSY GE in the forwarding software market. As a public, high-growth incumbent, WiseTech represents a major threat to DAKOSY's mid-market and enterprise forwarding customer base.

Emerging players

• iCustoms: iCustoms is an AI-driven customs and trade compliance platform that partnered with DAKOSY in June 2026 for UK-Germany-Switzerland cross-border digitalization. As an emerging AI-native customs player, it is both a strategic partner and a potential future competitor in automated customs declaration.

Regional players

• Cargonaut: Cargonaut operates the Port Community System for Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, comparable to DAKOSY's allivate airport cargo community system. Both serve as neutral air cargo community platforms coordinating slot booking, customs, and handling at major European airports.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/DAKOSYAG
• Facebookfacebook.com/DAKOSY
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dakosy-datenkommunikationssystem-ag

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DAKOSY