The Dutch government has banned Kyndryl from selling a strategic enterprise
The Dutch government has blocked the acquisition of Dutch cloud services provider Solvinity by Kyndryl, a major U.S. technology corporation, according to Zamin.uz.
The Dutch government concluded that the deal could pose a serious threat to societal security and national interests. This information has been widely reported by influential publications.
An official document signed by Minister of Digital Affairs Villemiyn Erdts states that a strict veto has been imposed on the acquisition. Solvinity is considered a system of strategic importance to the Netherlands.
This is because the company provides technical support for a special platform used by Dutch citizens to verify their identity when accessing government services, meaning that the personal data of millions of individuals is stored within this system.
The primary reason cited for rejecting the deal is the risk that data within the system could fall under the control of a foreign state. Specifically, under U.S. law, law enforcement and intelligence agencies may compel American companies to disclose data stored on foreign servers belonging to their subsidiaries.
The Dutch government does not wish for the confidential data of its citizens to be accessible to foreign authorities. This decision was made during a period when European Union countries are seeking to reduce dependence on American tech giants and strengthen digital sovereignty.
Representatives of Kyndryl expressed strong disagreement with the decision, calling it unexpected. As of now, the financial value and other details of the canceled deal have not been disclosed to the public.
This incident once again demonstrates how critical the issues of national security and personal data protection are in the global technology market.
