Q: Now that it’s a publicly-traded company, what is Kyndryl?

Wyshner: We are the world leader in designing, building, managing and modernizing mission-critical information systems. As our Chairman and CEO, Martin Schroeter, puts it, “We are the ‘hearts and lungs’ of our customers’ technology stacks”.

We have 88,449 experts operating in 63 countries. Kyndrylstake great pride in working with our customers to power their critical systems –which in turn power the global digital economy. We have more than 4,000 customers around the globe, including 75 percent of the Fortune 100 and more than half of the Fortune 500.

Kyndryl starts with a 30-year legacy of security and trust, and a strong foundation in applied data, automation and operational AI. As an independent company, we have organized our six business practices around the way our customers consumeour services: Cloud; Core Enterprise and zCloud; Applications, Data and AI; Digital Workplace; Cybersecurity and Resiliency; and Network and Edge.

And now, our stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “KD,” which allows investors to invest directly in our business.

Q: What does listing on the NYSE mean for Kyndryl?

Wyshner: Our separation will more than double our addressable market from $240 billion pre-spin to $510 billion by 2024, with market growth driven by numerous interrelated tailwinds. That’s more than twice our potential when we were a unit of IBM. It’s a growing market that is being driven by businesses’ massive push to automate processes, the explosive growth of data and the need for greater cybersecurity across all industries.

A key part of enlarging our market is the freedom of action that comes with being a standalone entity.We are a true services company, propelledby the needs of our customers, rather than the services arm supporting a company that sells technology products.We are free to expand our ecosystem of partners and services with a technology-agnostic approach that benefits our customers.

Our Kyndryls’ experience and expertise is an enormous asset for us, and independence allows us to invest in our peoplein a way that wasn’t possible within the IBM context. As our colleagues around the worldacquire skills and certifications in new technologies, we will partner withour growing ecosystem to help new and existing customers make the most of their digital transformations.

Q: What drives the market opportunity for Kyndryl?

Wyshner: We see tremendous opportunities as customers from every industry move to accelerate their digital transformation programs. This digitization is the fundamental driver of our business.

CEOs identify IT infrastructure as their biggest challenge, but the increasing complexity of IT infrastructure and lack of skills are barriers to transformation. With 65percent of global GDP estimated to be digitized by next year, it’s clear they are feeling the pressure. And many are just getting started –Gartner estimates that half of all companies are only beginning their digital journeys. This is where Kyndryl’s core strengths come in. Kyndryl helps customers solve these issues by increasing their operational efficiency, and driving transformation and agility during a period of fast technology changes and challenges.

Q: What makes Kyndryl a good investment?

Wyshner: We startlife as a publicly-traded company with $19 billion in annuity-like annual revenues and approximately 15 percent adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes depreciation and amortization) margins. Our trusted and experienced leadership team have fostered a strong, inclusive culture and are committed to growing from this strong base.

As we invest in our people and expand our ecosystem through new partnerships, we will create additional opportunitiesfor growth in areas like security and resiliency, cloud, and data services and intelligent automation, which are higher-value and faster-growing than our historical business mix.

Importantly, we start with a strong balance sheet and investment-grade credit ratings. Our first bond issue, which I’m pleased to note was substantially oversubscribed, helped give us more than $5 billion in available liquidity and $2 billion of cash.

We have IP that is unique in the industry built from our observations as a trusted partner to our more than 4,000 customers over decades. And our customers express their satisfaction through renewals of long-term contracts –as can be seen with our 94 percent retention rate.

When you think about it, Kyndryl is a unicorn –a company that combines the massive scale, technical expertise, intellectual property and blue-chip enterprise client base with the speed, agility, streamlined operations and growth mindset of a start-up.

Q: Are Kyndryls celebrating our Nov. 4 listing day?

Wyshner: Absolutely! It’s our independence day!

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