# Kyndryl new logo (2021)

> Kyndryl launched a new logo in 2021. IBM's managed infrastructure services business became Kyndryl, a new company with an invented name built from kinship and tendril and a lowercase kyndryl wordmark in red, which it took to the New York Stock Exchange when the spin-off was completed in November 2021.

## Key facts

- Brand: Kyndryl
- Launched: 2021
- What changed: IBM's managed infrastructure services business became Kyndryl, a new company with an invented name built from kinship and tendril and a lowercase kyndryl wordmark in red, which it took to the New York Stock Exchange when the spin-off was completed in November 2021.
- Industry: Technology
- Logos: https://rebrandlog.com/placeholder/na-light.svg (before), https://rebrandlog.com/logos/kyndryl-2021/after.svg (after)

## The rebrand, explained

IBM planned to split off the unit that runs and maintains customers' IT infrastructure as a separate company by the end of 2021. On 12 April 2021 the future company revealed its name, Kyndryl, with Martin Schroeter, its chief executive, saying "Kyndryl evokes the spirit of true partnership and growth". The Verge and CRN covered the announcement the same day.

The company explained both halves of the invented word. Kyn comes from kinship, reflecting the belief that relationships with employees, customers and partners sit at the centre of its strategy. Dryl comes from tendril, which the company said brings to mind new growth and the idea that, together with customers and partners, the business is always working toward advancing human progress.

Not everyone was charmed. The Verge headlined its story "Kyndryl is IBM's wacky new name for its dry IT spinoff", a fair reflection of how odd the word looked at first. The spin-off was completed on 3 November 2021, and the next day Kyndryl began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker KD, describing itself as the world's largest independent IT infrastructure services provider.

The wordmark itself is calm where the name is not: kyndryl in lowercase, set in a warm red sans serif with a small registered mark. For a company that started life with tens of thousands of staff and a long client list inherited from IBM, a simple word in a confident colour was a sensible way to make a strange new name feel familiar quickly.

In short: An invented name from kinship and tendril, set in calm lowercase red.

## Sources

- https://www.kyndryl.com/us/en/about-us/news/2021/04/2021-04-12-IBMs-Independent-Managed-Infrastructure-Services-Business-to-be-Named-Kyndryl
- https://www.kyndryl.com/us/en/about-us/news/2021/11/2021-11-04-Kyndryl-Completes-Separation-from-IBM
- https://newsroom.ibm.com/2021-11-03-IBM-Completes-the-Separation-of-Kyndryl
- https://www.theverge.com/tldr/2021/4/12/22380114/kyndryl-ibm-it-spinoff-name-infrastructure-branding
- https://www.crn.com/news/channel-programs/ibm-services-business-unveils-new-post-split-name-kyndryl

## Cite this

Rebrand Log, "Kyndryl new logo (2021)", https://rebrandlog.com/rebrand/kyndryl-2021/, last updated 2026-10-23.