Tech & AI Oct 16, 2026 · 7 min read

ASIC closes its WiseTech files; the CargoWise AI bill is next

ASIC walks away from WiseTech. Watch the CargoWise AI bill next. WiseTech shares rose 5.2% to A$35.28 on Thursday after ASIC, Australia’s corporate regulator, issued no-action letters to founder Richard White, two employees and the company, according to Investing.com. A no-action letter means no enforcement on that matter. Our view: for forwarders, the real story is now price, not governance. Citi expects WiseTech to charge for CargoWise AI agents separately from its Value Pack bundle, The Loadstar reported, with more than $30m of second-half revenue riding on agents and VerifyWise. Our call: WiseTech names a separate price for at least one AI agent by end of February 2027.

ASIC walks away from WiseTech. The CargoWise AI bill is what forwarders should watch now WiseTech Global shares rose 5.2% to A$35.28 by 02:26 GMT on Thursday 15 October, Investing.com reported. The trigger was a letter from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), the country’s corporate regulator.
ASIC issued no-action letters to founder Richard White and to two other current employees. A no-action letter means the regulator will not take enforcement action on that matter. The letters relate to an investigation into alleged trading in WiseTech shares. ASIC also closed a separate investigation into governance at the company, which began in late 2024, and gave WiseTech its own no-action letter. According to the company, ASIC’s investigation into one more person, who is not a WiseTech employee, is still open.
WiseTech makes CargoWise. For many mid-size and large forwarders, CargoWise is the system that runs everything: bookings, customs filings, documents, invoicing. So what happens at WiseTech lands on forwarders’ desks and on their software bills.
Our view: the regulatory story at WiseTech is largely over. The commercial story is just starting. With ASIC no longer in the frame, management’s attention, and investors’ attention, will move to one question: how much more can WiseTech charge CargoWise users, and how fast? Forwarders should start preparing for that conversation now.

What ASIC decided, and what it did not

The company’s announcement, as quoted by Investing.com, said ASIC was “confirming it would not pursue enforcement action over an investigation into alleged trading in WiseTech shares.”
This matter goes back a year. On Monday 27 October 2025, ASIC executed search warrants at WiseTech’s headquarters with help from the Australian Federal Police (AFP), AAP reported. Investigators were looking at alleged trading in WiseTech shares by White and three employees between late 2024 and early 2025. At the time, WiseTech said: “So far as WiseTech is aware, no charges have been laid against any person and there are no allegations against the company itself.” It also said it “intends to fully co-operate with any investigation.”
Reuters reported that the shares fell nearly 17% to A$70.60onthedaytheraidbecamepublic.Mediareportsatthetime,citedbyReuters,claimedWhitehadsoldmorethanA$200 million of shares during a blackout period. A blackout period is a window when insiders are not supposed to trade. Those were allegations. ASIC has now said it will not take enforcement action against White or the two employees over that investigation.
It is important to be precise about what the letters cover. They deal with share trading and with company governance. They do not deal with the separate allegations about White’s personal conduct that were reported in the media this year. White denies those allegations. When he stepped down as chair in July, he said: “I strenuously and unequivocally deny the recent allegations in the media,” according to Information Age. He remained a director and chief innovation officer at that point, the same report said, and independent director Raelene Murphy became chair.

Why the share price still tells a hard story

Thursday’s rise is good news for WiseTech holders. But the starting point matters.
The shares opened at A$85.02onthemorningtheraidwasdisclosed,accordingtoAAP.Theyhitanall-timehighofA$141.61 on 22 November 2024, Market Index reported. At A$35.28, they are about three-quarters below that peak, on our arithmetic.
Another sharp fall came in June. The Motley Fool reported an 18% one-day fall after media reports about the AFP and White. The same report said the shares were down more than 56% since the start of 2026. In February 2026, WiseTech announced about 2,000 job cuts, close to 30% of its workforce, according to Information Age.
The business underneath has kept growing, though more slowly. CargoWise revenue was US$682.2millioninthe2025financialyear,up18%,theMotleyFoolreported.Inthefirsthalfofthe2026financialyear,itrose12%toUS$372.4 million.
Our read: a company whose shares have fallen this far, while its main product is still growing, has a strong reason to push revenue per customer. With the regulator gone, the excuse of “distraction” is gone too. The pressure now goes on pricing.

The AI agents and the Value Pack

This is where forwarders should focus.
WiseTech has been moving customers onto CargoWise Value Packs, a bundled pricing plan. At its 2025 annual meeting, the company said a new commercial model would go live on 1 December, Capital Brief reported. The stated aim was simpler billing and a broader set of capabilities.
On 8 October, The Loadstar reported on a 1 October research note from Citi. Citi said WiseTech plans to charge for AI agents (software that carries out tasks such as data entry or checks on its own) separately. In Citi’s words, WiseTech is “monetising the AI agents separately from the CVP.” CVP stands for CargoWise Value Pack.
Citi estimated that, after price increases and contract conversions, more than $30m of the extra second-half revenue needed to reach the lower end of CargoWise’s growth guidance would have to come from AI agents and VerifyWise. The Loadstar report did not say which currency. Citi also questioned whether that revenue could arrive quickly, because the agents are still in development.
Citi’s note added that customers moving from fixed contracts onto Value Packs would get temporary pricing arrangements, with increases tied to large forwarders starting to achieve labour savings from AI, The Loadstar said. Citi also said WiseTech did not plan to push prices aggressively, preferring to drive adoption first.
Chief executive Zubin Appoo said six agentic capabilities are available through Value Packs today. On future products, he told The Loadstar that “any pricing would be aligned to the value those capabilities create for customers.” He added: “We will provide further details on future offerings when they are ready to be brought to market.”
Not everyone is comfortable. An unnamed industry source told The Loadstar: “Customers should be aware that future agents may not be included in current costing.” The Loadstar noted that WiseTech’s own Value Pack page lists exclusions, and AI agents do not appear on that list. It also noted that WiseTech had not promised every future agent would be included.

What it means for forwarders

Put the two stories together and the picture is clear.
First, the vendor risk has fallen. A year ago, some forwarders asked whether WiseTech’s leadership troubles could hurt product plans or support. One regulatory matter is still open, and it concerns a non-employee. But the main investigations into White, the two employees and the company are now closed without action.
Second, the pricing risk has risen. WiseTech needs revenue growth to win back investors. Citi’s note shows a meaningful slice of that growth is expected to come from AI agents. Appoo’s “aligned to the value” wording points to value-based pricing. That usually means the price is linked to the savings you make, not to what the software costs to deliver.
In practice, our view is that forwarders should:

Read their Value Pack or renewal terms closely. Check which AI agents are named as included, and whether “future” features are covered.

Ask for written confirmation of what is included before signing a conversion from a fixed contract.

Track their own labour savings from any agents they use. If price rises are linked to savings, as Citi describes, you want your own numbers, not just the vendor’s.

Budget for a separate AI line on the software bill from 2027.

Large forwarders have the most at stake. Citi links price increases to large forwarders achieving AI-driven labour savings, according to The Loadstar. Smaller users may see changes later, but they will likely see them.

Our prediction

We expect WiseTech to publish a separate price for at least one CargoWise AI agent, outside the Value Pack, by the end of February 2027. The revenue gap Citi describes falls in the second half of the year, and the agents need to be on sale to fill it.
We also expect the shares to stay well below A$70.60, the level they fell to on the day the raid became public, through the end of 2026. Closing the ASIC files removes one risk. It does not answer whether customers will pay extra for AI.

Sources