By Piyush Shukla
Publication Date: 2026-02-24 11:56:00
IBM stock crash: IBM stock plunged 13.2% in a single session — its steepest daily drop since October 18, 2000 — after Anthropic said its AI tool could modernize COBOL systems running on IBM mainframes. The sharp selloff erased billions in market value and sent shockwaves across the broader software and cybersecurity sector. Investors reacted swiftly after Anthropic announced that its Claude Code platform can automate large parts of COBOL modernization, a task historically dominated by IBM consultants.
The market interpreted the announcement as a potential threat to IBM’s lucrative legacy modernization and mainframe services business. COBOL, a decades-old programming language, remains deeply embedded across banking, insurance, and government infrastructure — much of it running on IBM systems. If AI significantly reduces the time and cost required to update these systems, it could reshape enterprise IT spending patterns.
Shares of IBM closed down 13.2%, marking the company’s…