IBM completes separation of $19 bn entity Kyndryl

Kyndryl, the managed infrastructure service business wing of Armonk, New York-based IBM’s managed infrastructure service business, has completed the hiving off process.   

The news of the separation into a separate publicly listed company was first announced in October 2020.  

Kyndryl also begun trading on the New York Stock exchange on November 4, 2021 under the ticker “KD”.  

“We are thrilled that Kyndryl is today an independent company -- with 90,000 of the best and brightest professionals, a strong balance sheet and a path to growth,” said Martin Schroeter, Kyndryl's chairman and chief executive officer.  

 “There is a large and growing need for digital transformation services, and our global expertise positions us well in a market that will expand to more than $500 billion by 2024,” added Schroeter.   

With the hive off, Kyndryl will now become the world’s largest IT infrastructure provider. It currently provides advisory, implementation and managed services to over 4,000 customers globally.   

Kyndryl begins its journey with an annual revenue of $19 billion. The company distributed shares were distributed on the evening of November 3, with each shareholder getting one Kyndryl share for every 5 shares owned.  

IBM has temporarily retained 19.9% of equity ownership for the company following the distribution.   

Kyndryl will help enterprises optimize performance through solutions such as artificial intelligence, automation and agile methodologies.   

In early March this year, IBM appointed and former general manager of North America and chairman of IBM Japan, Elly Keinan, as its group president, while Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Antoine Shagoury was appointed in June.  

In India, Kyndryl will be led by Lingraju Sawkar, who will serve as the country’s president.   

The cost of spinning off the new entity was estimated to be $5 billion in October 2020, according to IBM.