What Legato does

Legato Technologies, Inc. is a privately held IT outsourcing firm founded in 2005 and headquartered in San Clemente, California, with a reported headcount of 1-10 employees. The company provides outsourced software development, support, and colocation services, with a specialization in the marine container shipping industry that it serves across the Los Angeles/Long Beach, New York/New Jersey, and Chicago port complexes. Its customer base comprises marine terminal operators, centralized examination stations, intermodal services companies, ocean carriers, rail carriers, and US Customs.

The firm's core technology is built on the IBM i (AS/400) platform, including ILE RPG, Embedded SQL, PHP, and ILE C/C++ development, augmented with standards-based web technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, RESTful Web Services) for legacy application modernization. Its proprietary offering is the Legato Import Status Service (LISS), a volume-based subscription service that receives US Customs Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) manifest and status notifications, summarizes complex disposition relationships, and delivers them to customer Terminal Operating Systems (TOS) via EDI 315 or a RESTful API. Complementary offerings include full EDI translation services (ANS X12 and EDIFACT transaction sets including BAPLIE, CODECO, COEDOR, and VERMAS), web application development, IBM i system maintenance, and resold colocation.

Revenue is generated through three streams: professional services for software development and EDI integration, a monthly subscription for LISS based on ACE message volume, and managed colocation services across multiple US cities. Go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, with direct enterprise engagement and active participation in the CESAC and TOPAS standards committees providing market access and regulatory intelligence. The firm maintains bilateral working relationships with US Customs (acting as an AMS/ACE service center) and with virtually all major ocean carriers and rail carriers, positioning itself as a strategic partner rather than a transactional vendor to a small, concentrated customer universe.

Name

Legato

Legal name

Legato Technologies, Inc.

Website

https://legatotech.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Legato Technologies is a privately held IT outsourcing firm that provides software development, EDI integration, and colocation services, primarily serving marine terminal operators, ocean and rail carriers, and US Customs across major US ports.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

IT Outsourcing and EDI Services

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Support Activities for Water Transportation (4883)

SIC

Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Sanctions, Embargo & Export Controls (EAR/ITAR) Compliance Tools (TLAEAOAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Trade Compliance & Ocean Regulatory Services (Sanctions/Export Controls) (TLACABAL)

Keywords

• IT outsourcing services
• EDI integration services
• IBM i development
• Customs compliance software
• Marine terminal software

Headquarters

HQ city

San Clemente

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Software Development and Support Services: Outsourced software development and support services for IBM i platform modernization and EDI integration. Revenue is generated through professional services engagements with customers across various industries, with specialized focus on marine container shipping sector.
2. Legato Import Status Service Subscription: Volume-based subscription service for US Customs ACE manifest and status notification processing. Subscription-based pricing model for the Legato Import Status Service (LISS).
3. Colocation Services: Data center colocation services through relationships with providers in multiple US cities, including optional system hardware provision for customers that do not want to purchase or lease directly.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Legato Technologies provides outsourced software development, support, and colocation services, with deep specialization in IBM i platform development, EDI integration, and US Customs AMS/ACE processing for the marine container shipping industry. The company delivers custom application development on IBM i, modernizes legacy applications with web-based interfaces, manages EDI translation and trading partner communications, and operates the Legato Import Status Service (LISS), a subscription-based service for receipt and interpretation of US Customs ACE manifest and status notifications.

Product overview

Legato Technologies provides outsourced software development, support, and colocation services primarily serving the marine container shipping industry. The company's product portfolio centers on the Legato Import Status Service—a subscription-based US Customs ACE notification service—which works in conjunction with Container Terminal and Carrier Services (EDI processing and TOS integration), EDI Services (full EDI translation and trading partner management), Web Application Development, and IBM i Services (legacy platform modernization and hosting). The offering is a multi-service IT outsourcing model rather than a unified platform, where services can be engaged individually or in combination to modernize legacy applications, integrate EDI into business processes, and connect to US Customs and terminal operating systems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Legato Import Status Service: A volume-based subscription service providing receipt and interpretation of US Customs Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) manifest and status notification messages for marine cargo tracking.

Products and services

• Legato Import Status Service (LISS)

Named customers6 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• CESAC (Customs Electronic Systems Action Committee)OthersActive member of CESAC, an industry committee focused on customs electronic systems standards development and best practices.
• TOPAS (Terminal Operator and Port Authority Subcommittee for EDI Standards Development)OthersActive member of TOPAS, which meets semi-annually at various ports throughout the U.S. and Canada. TOPAS is a group of individuals representing terminal operators, port authorities and steamship lines working on EDI standards development.
• Ocean Carriers (Major and Smaller)coreTechnology or IntegrationMaintains excellent working relationships with virtually all major and many smaller ocean carriers for EDI integration and processing services.
• Rail CarrierscoreTechnology or IntegrationMaintains excellent working relationships with rail carriers for EDI integration and processing services.
• US CustomscoreTechnology or IntegrationMaintains excellent working relationships with US Customs for AMS/ACE integration and processing. Acts as an AMS/ACE service center.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Amber Road (E2open): Amber Road, also part of E2open, delivers trade compliance, restricted-party screening, and supply chain collaboration software. It addresses the same customs and regulatory compliance buyer as Legato, but with enterprise-scale SaaS rather than niche services.
• Descartes Systems Group: Descartes is the dominant North American SaaS provider for customs (ACE), trade compliance, and logistics EDI — the closest analog at scale to Legato's LISS. They operate a much broader product portfolio across customs, GLN, and transportation, competing on the same customs manifest integration problem set Legato solves, but as an incumbent platform vendor rather than a niche service partner.
• OpenText (GXS / Trading Grid): OpenText's GXS / Trading Grid is one of the largest global EDI networks and competes at the integration layer that Legato's EDI Services operate against. While broader in scope, it is a credible incumbent alternative for large terminal operators weighing build-vs-buy decisions.
• TrueCommerce: TrueCommerce is a scaled EDI and B2B integration provider with deep logistics, retail, and supply chain verticals. It competes with Legato on the EDI translation and trading partner management product surface but serves a much broader mid-market and enterprise base.
• IntegrationPoint (E2open): IntegrationPoint, now part of E2open's trade compliance suite, provides global trade management and import/export compliance automation. It competes against Legato in the customs/trade compliance integration layer, though with a much broader GTM platform stack.

Direct peers

• DiCentral: DiCentral provides EDI integration, B2B data exchange, and supply chain connectivity for logistics, retail, and manufacturing — overlapping significantly with Legato's EDI Services line (ANSI X12, EDIFACT, trading partner onboarding) and competing for the same shipping/logistics integration budget.
• Magaya: Magaya offers a freight forwarding and customs brokerage platform with deep EDI, ACE/ACI integration, and TMS functionality for ocean and intermodal workflows. It targets a similar SMB/mid-market logistics buyer as Legato with overlapping EDI translation and customs connectivity capabilities.
• Questa Software: Questa specializes in customs and import compliance software (brokerage, ACE integration, duty drawback, post-entry amendments), directly competing with the customs-compliance workflow that LISS supports and that Legato's professional services teams deliver to brokers and importers.
• CargoSmart: CargoSmart, originally founded by OOCL and now operating as a neutral container shipping platform, provides EDI integration, schedule, and cargo visibility services to ocean carriers and terminals. It is the most direct competitive reference for Legato's Container Terminal and Carrier Services and represents the carrier-backed platform alternative for the same buyers.

Emerging players

• Kale Logistics Solutions: Kale Logistics provides port community systems, EDI, and cargo handling software targeted at ports, terminals, and customs — directly comparable to Legato's container terminal offering, with comparable EDI-centric architecture but a primarily India/Asia and emerging-market focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Legato