Kyndryl
Corporate brand
UnclaimedA global IT infrastructure services company created through IBM's 2021 separation of its managed infrastructure business. An information technology services company in the United States.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
Kyndryl is an American multinational IT services company headquartered in New York City. It designs, builds, operates, manages, and modernizes technology infrastructure for enterprises and public-sector organizations. Its work covers cloud environments, network and edge systems, cybersecurity and resilience, digital workplaces, core enterprise platforms, mainframe and z/OS environments, applications, data, analytics, and artificial intelligence. The company also provides advisory and consulting services intended to help customers plan and execute technology transformation programs. Kyndryl was formed from the infrastructure services business that IBM separated from the rest of its operations. The business represented the majority of IBM Global Technology Services and entered the separation process with a substantial installed base: at the end of 2020, the planned standalone company served approximately 4,400 customers, including many large global enterprises. IBM announced the name Kyndryl in April 2021. The name was described as combining an association with kinship and a reference to a tendril, emphasizing relationships and interconnected growth. The separation was completed on November 4, 2021. Kyndryl began trading independently on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol KD, with Martin Schroeter as its first chairman and chief executive officer. At launch, the company operated in dozens of countries and managed roughly 400 data centers. Its initial business model was centered on long-term contracts to run customers' critical technology environments, but Kyndryl has also sought to increase its role in modernization, consulting, cloud migration, data management, automation, and artificial intelligence. Partnerships have been central to the company's strategy. Kyndryl established major digital-transformation relationships with Microsoft, Google Cloud, and Amazon Web Services soon after becoming independent. These arrangements were designed to combine Kyndryl's infrastructure operations and industry expertise with partners' cloud platforms and software ecosystems. Kyndryl has also developed proprietary offerings, including Kyndryl Bridge (a platform and operating capability for integrating and managing technology environments) and Kyndryl Consult (its advisory and consulting capability). The company initially organized its services into cloud; security and resiliency; network and edge computing; digital workplace; core enterprise and zCloud; and applications, data, and artificial intelligence. Its customers include organizations with complex, highly regulated, or mission-critical systems that require continuous availability, migration support, security controls, and operational expertise. Kyndryl's positioning therefore differs from that of a pure software vendor or public-cloud provider: it acts primarily as an infrastructure partner and systems integrator, often coordinating technology from multiple vendors. Kyndryl has continued to adjust its portfolio after the spin-off. In 2024, it announced the acquisition of Skytap (a provider associated with hosted environments for specialized and legacy workloads) alongside the divestiture of its Securities Industry Services business to Broadridge Financial Solutions. These moves reflected an effort to focus on infrastructure modernization and strategic services. Kyndryl remains an independent publicly listed company and continues to operate internationally, although the regional structure of its business has evolved since its founding.
History
Kyndryl originated in IBM's infrastructure services organization, historically known as IBM Global Technology Services. IBM decided to separate that business from its other operations so that the infrastructure-services company could pursue its own strategy, partnerships, investment priorities, and operating model. The proposed standalone business had a large enterprise customer base: at the end of 2020, it was associated with approximately 4,400 customers, including a substantial majority of Fortune 100 companies. IBM announced the Kyndryl name in April 2021. The company explained the name as a combination evoking kinship and a tendril, reflecting a desired emphasis on enduring customer relationships and interconnected technology environments. Kyndryl was formally established in the second half of 2021, and the legal and operational separation from IBM was completed on November 4, 2021. On that date, Kyndryl began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol KD. Martin Schroeter became the company's first chairman and chief executive officer. At its launch, Kyndryl inherited a broad infrastructure-operations footprint. It operated in 63 countries and managed approximately 400 data centers, while providing services to organizations whose systems often included mainframes, private infrastructure, networks, data centers, workplace technology, and emerging public-cloud environments. The company's initial challenge was to preserve the reliability and scale associated with its predecessor while establishing a distinct identity and expanding beyond traditional infrastructure outsourcing. Kyndryl responded by emphasizing a partner-led approach. In November 2021 it announced a relationship with Microsoft for digital-transformation work based on Microsoft Cloud. It followed with a Google Cloud partnership in December 2021 and an Amazon Web Services partnership in February 2022. These relationships positioned Kyndryl as an independent integrator and operator capable of managing hybrid environments rather than as a provider tied to a single proprietary platform. In October 2022, Kyndryl and Microsoft announced a data pipeline connecting Azure with Kyndryl's zCloud platform, illustrating the company's effort to connect modern cloud services with mainframe and other core enterprise systems. Kyndryl initially described six principal service areas: cloud; security and resiliency; network and edge computing; digital workplace; core enterprise and zCloud; and applications, data, and artificial intelligence. The company also developed Kyndryl Bridge, intended to help customers observe, integrate, and manage complex technology estates, and Kyndryl Consult, a business-advisory and consulting practice. These offerings broadened Kyndryl's role from day-to-day infrastructure operations toward architecture, modernization planning, automation, data strategy, and transformation execution. The company has periodically changed its organizational and portfolio structure. It announced new financial reporting segments in January 2022, reflecting the need to present the standalone business in a way distinct from IBM's former reporting structure. In 2022, CRN ranked Kyndryl sixth among North America's largest IT solution providers by revenue. In September 2023, the Financial Times reported that Kyndryl was separating its Chinese arm; sources cited geopolitical tensions between the United States and China as an influence on the decision. In May 2024, Kyndryl announced the acquisition of Skytap and the divestiture of Securities Industry Services to Broadridge Financial Solutions. The transactions were presented as portfolio optimization, with the company seeking to focus resources on strategic infrastructure, cloud, modernization, and consulting capabilities. Kyndryl's development since its separation has therefore combined continuity and repositioning. It retained the operational heritage, enterprise relationships, and technical scale of IBM's infrastructure-services business, while attempting to build an independent brand centered on hybrid cloud, vendor-neutral integration, resilience, automation, and advisory work. Its long-term identity remains that of a global partner for designing, operating, and modernizing complex information-technology environments.
- 2024
Skytap acquisition and Securities Industry Services divestiture announced
[1]Kyndryl announced the acquisition of Skytap and the sale of its Securities Industry Services business to Broadridge Financial Solutions.
- 2022
AWS partnership announced
[1]Kyndryl partnered with Amazon Web Services to deliver cloud-related transformation and managed services.
- 2022
Kyndryl launches Bridge and consulting capabilities
[1]Kyndryl introduced Kyndryl Bridge and a business-consulting segment as part of its independent growth strategy.
- 2022
Azure-zCloud data connection announced
[1]Kyndryl and Microsoft created a data pipeline between Microsoft Azure and Kyndryl's zCloud platform.
- 2021
Kyndryl name is announced
[1]IBM announced the Kyndryl name in April, describing it as a reference to kinship and tendril-like interconnected growth.
- 2021
Kyndryl becomes an independent public company
[1]The separation from IBM was completed on November 4, and Kyndryl began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under KD.
- 2021
Microsoft partnership announced
[1]Kyndryl and Microsoft formed a partnership focused on digital-transformation services using Microsoft Cloud.
- 2020
Pre-separation business serves a large enterprise customer base
[1]The infrastructure-services business that would become Kyndryl was associated with approximately 4,400 customers, including about 75% of Fortune 100 companies.
Products and positioning
A global, enterprise-focused infrastructure services and consulting provider emphasizing mission-critical operations, hybrid-cloud integration, modernization, resilience, and partnerships with major technology platforms.
IT infrastructure management platform · 2022
Kyndryl Bridge
Kyndryl Bridge is a platform and operating capability for helping customers integrate, observe, and manage complex technology environments. It is associated with the company's effort to provide a coordinated view across hybrid infrastructure, cloud services, applications, and operational processes rather than treating each environment as an isolated system.
Technology consulting · 2022
Kyndryl Consult
Kyndryl Consult is the company's advisory and consulting offering. It supports technology strategy, architecture, modernization planning, cloud transformation, data and artificial-intelligence programs, and the practical execution of changes to enterprise infrastructure. The offering complements Kyndryl's managed-services operations by connecting planning with implementation and ongoing management.
Mainframe and core enterprise cloud services
Kyndryl zCloud
Kyndryl zCloud is associated with hosted and managed services for IBM Z and other core enterprise workloads. It is designed to help organizations operate and modernize mainframe environments while connecting them with broader hybrid-cloud architectures. Kyndryl's Azure integration work with Microsoft demonstrated the intended role of zCloud in linking core systems with public-cloud services.
Cloud services · 2021
Managed cloud services
Kyndryl's managed cloud services cover the design, migration, operation, governance, and modernization of enterprise cloud environments. The portfolio spans hybrid and multicloud architectures and is delivered through relationships with platforms including Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and Amazon Web Services.
Cybersecurity and business continuity · 2021
Security and resiliency services
These services help enterprises protect infrastructure, manage cyber risk, improve operational resilience, and prepare for disruption. They form one of Kyndryl's principal service areas and are closely connected to the company's responsibility for operating mission-critical systems and data environments.
Brand decisions
2024
Optimize the portfolio through acquisition and divestitureM&ABackground
Kyndryl announced a portfolio-optimization action intended to strengthen its focus on strategic infrastructure and modernization services.
Action taken
The company announced the acquisition of Skytap and the divestiture of Securities Industry Services to Broadridge Financial Solutions.
Aftermath
The announced transactions were intended to concentrate the business on core infrastructure, cloud, modernization, and consulting capabilities.
2022
Expand into consulting and platform-led servicesStrategyBackground
Kyndryl sought to move beyond inherited infrastructure outsourcing and participate more directly in modernization, transformation, and advisory work.
Action taken
The company launched Kyndryl Bridge and established a business-consulting segment.
Aftermath
The move broadened Kyndryl's offering across infrastructure management, architecture, transformation planning, and operational integration.
2021
Separate IBM infrastructure services into KyndrylM&ABackground
IBM sought to create an independent company from its infrastructure-services business, which represented the bulk of the former IBM Global Technology Services organization.
Action taken
The separation was completed on November 4, 2021, and Kyndryl began operating as an independent NYSE-listed company.
Aftermath
Kyndryl inherited a large enterprise customer base and global infrastructure footprint while developing an independent partner-led strategy.
2021
Adopt a multivendor cloud-partnership strategyStrategyBackground
As an independent infrastructure provider, Kyndryl needed to support customers using multiple public-cloud and enterprise technology platforms.
Action taken
Kyndryl announced partnerships with Microsoft and Google Cloud in 2021, followed by a partnership with Amazon Web Services in 2022.
Aftermath
The partnerships positioned Kyndryl as a hybrid-cloud integrator and managed-services provider rather than a company dependent on a single cloud platform.
Recent events
Reported
Kyndryl introduces Agentic Modernization services-as-software[3]
Kyndryl introduced Agentic Modernization services-as-software, using software-driven automation and intelligence to deliver modernization services through pre-built workflows orchestrating autonomous AI agents.
- Unconfirmed
Kyndryl and Cloudera announce global partnership[4]
Kyndryl and Cloudera announced a global collaboration to help enterprise customers with data transformation across hybrid cloud environments. They also plan to establish a joint innovation center to develop industry-integrated solutions and delivery capabilities.
- Unconfirmed
Kyndryl and Nokia partner on private wireless services[5]
Kyndryl announced a partnership with Nokia to bring LTE and 5G private wireless networking services to industrial-sector customers. Nokia will contribute its Digital Automation Cloud platform, while Kyndryl will provide consulting, design, implementation and managed services.
Reported
Kyndryl and Nokia form global network and edge computing alliance[6]
Kyndryl and Nokia teamed up through a global network and edge computing alliance to offer LTE and 5G private wireless networking for digital transformation projects.
Reported
Kyndryl and Google form a global strategic partnership[7]
Kyndryl formed a global strategic partnership with Google to support their joint customers in the cloud, with a focus including cloud-based AI and analytics and moving SAP workloads to the cloud.
Reported
IBM spins out infrastructure services business as Kyndryl[8]
IBM spun out its infrastructure services business into a separate company called Kyndryl.
Sources9 sources
- 1Kyndrylen.wikipedia.org
- 2Kyndryl official websitekyndryl.com
- 3Kyndryl推出Agentic Modernization软件化服务sdtimes.com
- 4Kyndryl 与 Cloudera 宣布全球合作ithome.com.tw
- 5Kyndryl 与 Nokia 合作提供专用无线服务crn.com
- 6Kyndryl与诺基亚建立全球网络和边缘计算联盟arnnet.com.au
- 7Kyndryl 与 Google 建立全球战略合作伙伴关系cio.com
- 8IBM将基础设施服务业务分拆为Kyndryltechcrunch.com
- 9Kyndryl 勤達睿與諾基亞共同宣佈開展全球性網路與邊緣運算合作ithome.com.tw
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