The drop outpaced even the company’s previous worst day, a 23.7% fall on 19 October 1987, and wiped out roughly USD 68.8 billion in market value in a single session.

IBM’s trading records only go back to 1968, but the company has actually been listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) since 1916, meaning this is the worst single day in more than a hundred years of trading history for the stock.

Just eight days earlier, on 6 July, Bank of America had raised its price target on IBM to USD 330, and the stock had closed the prior session at USD 290.23, not far off a recent high of USD 332.46. That optimism made the reversal all the more jarring for investors who had been betting on continued strength.

IBM issued its warning ahead of its scheduled earnings date, a move known on Wall Street as a preannouncement. The company said second-quarter revenue would come in at USD 17.2 billion, missing analyst forecasts of USD 17.86 billion, while adjusted earnings per share of USD 2.93 fell short of the expected USD 3.01. GAAP earnings per share came in around USD 2.27, a 2% decline from a year earlier, and pretax income margin slipped to roughly 14.4%, down 90 basis points.

Software revenue still grew 5% and consulting held roughly steady, but the infrastructure business, which includes IBM’s mainframe hardware, slid 7%. The swing looks especially sharp against the first quarter of 2026, when software revenue had actually grown 11% to USD 7.05 billion.

In a letter to investors, chief executive Arvind Krishna explained that clients had suddenly redirected spending away from software and consulting in the final weeks of June, choosing instead to buy servers, storage and memory chips before an expected wave of price increases.

Krishna said the company had not adapted quickly enough and that a number of large deals failed to close on schedule as a result. He had flagged as far back as April that the second quarter would involve completing the rollout of IBM’s new z17 mainframe, an AI-capable system, though he acknowledged the company had not anticipated the scale of the spending shift this triggered.

Behind that shift sits a broader problem gripping the tech industry, a severe global shortage of memory chips. Major chipmakers such as Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron have redirected production toward the specialised chips used in AI data centres, leaving less capacity for the everyday memory used in ordinary servers, PCs and phones. That squeeze has pushed prices up and prompted many companies to buy hardware early.

IBM’s fall rattled the wider software sector too. Salesforce dropped 4% and Microsoft fell almost 3% the same day, while the IGV software ETF, which tracks a broad basket of software companies, slipped 2%.

Analysts noted that IBM’s revenue miss, at under 4%, was fairly modest, but the size of the share price reaction reflects how highly valued the stock had become beforehand, trading at roughly 23 times forward earnings just before the warning.

In the aftermath, the stock traded around USD 219.50, with a relative strength index of just 19, a level technically considered very oversold, and analysts pegged near-term support at USD 213.28.

The episode has split opinions. Some analysts see it as a company-specific execution stumble tied to a temporary memory chip shortage. Others read it as an early sign that spending on AI infrastructure is starting to eat into traditional enterprise software and consulting budgets more broadly, not just at IBM.

IBM is due to report its full second-quarter results on 22 July 2026, which should clarify whether the lost revenue was simply delayed into the next quarter or reflects a genuine slowdown in demand.

In the meantime, HSBC has already cut its rating on the stock to “Reduce,” with a lowered price target of USD 191, suggesting some analysts expect the pressure on IBM’s traditional software and consulting business to continue s rating on the stock to “Reduce,” with a lowered price target of USD 191, suggesting some analysts expect the pressure on IBM’s traditional software and consulting business to continue.

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Announcing his retirement, Glickman said, “When I joined ZIM nine years ago, I did so after deep deliberation, but with absolute clarity of purpose. I believed in this company, I believed in its people, and I believed that with the right strategy, discipline, and courage, we could transform ZIM into a stronger, more innovative, and more resilient global player. Together, we did exactly that.”

“Over these years, ZIM delivered what can only be described as an astounding turnaround, achieving results that, at times, were unprecedented for the company and restoring pride in the ZIM name across the industry. None of this belongs to one person. It belongs to the extraordinary ZIM team, colleagues across the globe who showed professionalism, determination, and heart every single day. I am profoundly proud of what we achieved together, and I am grateful to every employee, in every country and every function, for the role they played in that success,” he added.

In early 2026, Zim signed a deal with German shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd, in which the latter will acquire 100% of its Israeli counterpart’s shares for USD 4.2 billion, apart from delisting the company from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). Hapag-Lloyd will sell Zim’s Israeli operations to Ishay Davidi-led FIMI fund, in order to comply with the conditions of Tel Aviv’s “golden share,” which mandates the continuity of the country’s maritime transport during emergencies.

“In recent months, the company’s board promoted a merger process with Hapag-Lloyd. I respect the board’s decision; however, after reflection, I concluded that I cannot continue as CEO of ZIM. I have always put my heart and soul into this position. For me, leadership is not a title – it is a commitment, and it must be aligned with the journey ahead. One of my central aims throughout this period was to help secure the future of ZIM’s dedicated employees. Our employees have also lived through a very challenging period of war, and I have felt a deep responsibility to lead with steadiness and care. With the transition process underway, I believe this is the right moment to move ahead,” Glickman remarked.

Before Hapag-Lloyd’s takeover, Glickman had reportedly attempted to lead a group to acquire Zim. However, the bid was rejected. In March 2026, the outgoing CEO sold nearly all of his shares in Zim for approximately USD 40 million, at a price about 20% lower than the offer price set by Hapag-Lloyd. Zim went public on the NYSE in 2021 at a valuation of USD 1.5 billion pre-money and USD 1.7 billion post-money. Its current market value stands at around USD 3.2 billion, approximately USD 1 billion below the acquisition price.

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The Proshares Bitcoin-linked ETF started trading on the NYSE under the ticker name of BITO. Reportedly, the bitcoin ETF was trading at 3.2 percent higher at $41.2. Bitcoin’s value surged as much as $64,499 on Tuesday.

In this regard, Simeon Hyman, global investment strategist at ProShares told the media, “We are really excited to bring BITO, the first Bitcoin-linked ETF, to investors as an important opportunity for them conveniently to invest in Bitcoin in their regular brokerage account. This is going to allow many people who have been waiting for an easy way to do this and a robust way to do this to now be involved and have it in their portfolios.”

It was further reported that nearly 12 million shares worth $480 million changed hands since the start of trading.

Last week, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved an application from crypto-asset manager Valkyrie for a Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund with the shares to be listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

It was revealed in a letter from Eun Ah Choi, Nasdaq’s vice president of listing qualifications. The letter noted Valkyrie’s Bitcoin ETF shares had been certified by the stock exchange.

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ZTO Express is selling 45 million shares in its Hong Kong listing, the company said in a US filing.

It has set a maximum price of HK$268 apiece for the portion of the deal being marketed to retail investors, which represents a 10 percent premium to Tuesday’s closing price of $31.37.

It will be its second listing as the company is already listed in the New York Stock Exchange.

Final prices of the shares will be set next week and the stock is due to start trading in Hong Kong on September 29.

ZTO Express, which is one of China’s leading express delivery companies, claims to hold a market share of 21.5 percent, according to its website.

The Alibaba-backed delivery company’s net income grew 6.5 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier to $214 million as ecommerce received a boost due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In the last couple of months, a number of Chinese companies have decided to sell its shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, despite being listed in a foreign exchange such as the New York Stock Exchange or Nasdaq.

According to Bloomberg, around $10 billion have been raised by Chinese companies listing in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Companies that have raised funds by listing in Hong Kong include JD.com and NetEase.

Earlier this year, Nasdaq unveiled new restrictions on initial public offerings (IPOs), a move that will make it harder for some Chinese companies to debut on its stock exchange.

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When the company planned an initial public offering (IPO) last year, a majority of its workforce was in China, with a nominal number in the US. 

CloudMinds specialises in cloud robotics and artificial intelligence. The company’s job cuts also target China, where a majority of its workforce is based. Also, a large part of the company’s revenue is generated from China. 

The job cuts will impact CloudMinds workforce, leaving only a small staff presence in the US and Japan. CloudMinds’ co-headquartered Silicon Valley office will be shut down — and its staff will be moved to an office in Irvine, California, media reports said. 

Last year, the company had plans to list in the US. It had foreseen swift market growth because of its highly intelligent, cloud-connected robots. 

However, investors have been skeptical about investing in a SoftBank-backed company, media reports said. CloudMinds plans to list in Mainland China. Previously, its attempt to list in Hong Kong had failed. 

The company had a net loss of nearly $100 million in the six months to last June, compared to a loss of $65 million in the same period in the previous year, according to a regulatory filing. 

CloudMinds is Softbank’s latest company to slash jobs. CloudMinds offers products such as humanoid robots XR-1 and Cloud Pepper. Cloud Pepper is an advanced version of SoftBank’s Pepper robot.

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According to media reports, OneConnect, which is the fintech arm of Chinese financial conglomerate Ping An, is planning for an IPO in New York rather than Hong Kong to achieve a higher valuation. The startup’s initial plan was to raise $1 billion by listing its shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and achieve a valuation of $8 billion.

OneConnect, which is backed by SoftBank’s Vision Fund, has hired firms such as Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Ping An Securities, and HSBC as underwriters for the IPO.

Reportedly, OneConnect’s IPO filing revealed a net loss of $147 million during the nine months ended September 30, as compared with an $82 million net loss for the same period last year.

So far, OneConnect had provided services to over 200 banks and 200,000 enterprises as of September this year. The startup so far has received more than $1 billion as loans from Ping An with an interest rate between 4.55 percent to 7.3 percent.

Earlier in 2018, the company also launched its blockchain platform with a focus on finance, real estate, medical and the automobile industry. According to OneConnect, its blockchain technology can handle up to 50,000 transactions per second with a latency of fewer than 0.5 seconds and also implements zero-knowledge proof technology.

Ping An’s healthcare startup Ping An Good Doctor, which is also backed by SoftBank, raised around $1.1 billion by listing its shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

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Yasir Al Rumayyan, previously held the role of a board member in Aramco and also acted as a key adviser to Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.

In recent months, there have been speculations about Aramco changing its chairman ahead of its IPO.

With regard to Aramco’s chairman change, Olivier Jakob, managing director at consultant Petromatrix told the media that, “All this shows that in Saudi Arabia there has been some dissatisfaction at the highest levels on how things have been going. Khalid Al Falih has not really fully delivered on oil prices. He hasn’t delivered the price that’s required by the Saudi budget. There’s speculation that prices and the IPO are linked and they need higher prices to get the valuation they want for the IPO.”

Aramco’s IPO, which could be the world’s largest was put on hold last year. However, the process was accelerated after Aramco completed a $12 billion bond sale in April. Major stock exchanges around the globe such as the New York Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange are competing with each other to list Aramco.

However, according to reports, Saudi Aramco’s board is against a listing on the New York Stock Exchange as it involves too many legal risks. Another report suggests that Saudi Aramco is considering Tokyo as the international destination to list its shares.

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Lyft’s shares lost more than 20 percent of their value after its IPO. The Uber IPO valuation is quite below expectations especially since it was the most anticipated IPO since Facebook’s. According to Reuters, the Uber’s IPO valuation is nearly a third less than the figure its investment bankers had anticipated last year.

Alex Castelli, managing partner at advisory firm CohnReznick, said, “Ultimately, the success of Lyft and Uber IPO’s offerings will be judged based on post-IPO performance and how these companies can sustain their growth, while moving toward profitability and lowering their cash burn.”

After Lyft’s IPO fluctuations in late March Uber has settled for a lower price in order to avoid being mired in a situation where prices rose and plunged in trade. Despite that, many analysts believe that Uber’s IPO was oversubscribed.

Uber’s CEO Dara Khosrowshahi in meeting with investors over the last two weeks said that the company’s future is not simply focused on ride-sharing, but as an advanced technology platform revamping logistics and transportation.

The company is due to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday under the name UBER.

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Jumia’s remaining two founders are of French origin—Jeremy Hodara and Sacha Poignonnec. According to media firm Weetracker, which targets startup funding in Africa, African startups raised $726 million in 458 deals in 2018.

Even impact investing funding is skewed in favour of Western founders. According to the funding records of Global Impact Investing Network, just over 50% of the funding raised by African startups were those with Western or ethnic European founders.

Abdul Karim Mohamed, a Canadian Somali development worker who focuses on the African startup scenario told German publication DW that “ Entrepreneurs from Western Europe and North America have an upper hand when it comes to accessing capital and local entrepreneurs often get overlooked.”

Local entrepreneurs are often limited by the reach of their networks. In addition, the governments and established African entrepreneurs have barely warmed up to the idea of startup funding. Most investors see startup investing as too risky.

But the success of Jumia’s IPO could change investor perceptions about African startups. Already French drinks major Pernod Ricard holds a 5.1 stake in Jumia. Mastercard has agreed to buy $56 million worth Jumia stock in a private placement at the time of the IPO. Jumia’s largest shareholder is African telecom operator MTN with 30% followed by Rocket Internet.

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The Notes will be KREF’s senior unsecured obligations. The Notes will bear interest at a rate of 6.125% per year, payable semi-annually in arrears on May 15 and November 15 of each year, beginning on November 15, 2018. The Notes will mature on May 15, 2023, unless they have been repurchased or converted earlier.

The initial conversion rate for the Notes is 43.9386 shares of KREF’s common stock per $1,000 principal amount of Notes, which represents a 10% conversion premium over the last reported sale price of $20.69 per share of KREF’s common stock on The New York Stock Exchange on May 15, 2018.

Prior to February 15, 2023, the Notes will be convertible only upon satisfaction of certain conditions and during certain periods, and thereafter, at any time until the close of business on the second scheduled trading day immediately preceding the maturity date. KREF will satisfy any conversion elections by paying or delivering, as the case may be, cash, shares of KREF’s common stock or a combination of cash and shares of KREF’s common stock, at its election.

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