Full-fibre and IP transport veteran joins as UK operators and utilities face mounting pressure to modernise ageing infrastructure and meet surging demand for secure, high-capacity connectivity.
London, 6th August 2026 – Axians UK, a leading technology services provider, has appointed industry veteran Steve Kingdom as Director of Technology. Drawing on the company’s deep telecoms network heritage, Steve is responsible for driving partnerships with Service Providers, as well as exploring opportunities in the Utilities sector.
Kingdom joins Axians following a distinguished career in fixed network architecture and telecommunications engineering. He previously served as CTO for Fixed Networks at Xantaro, spearheading major FTTx deployments and advanced IP transport architectures. As Chief Architect at Huawei UK leading Standards & Industry Development activities and identified new opportunities for the company in the UK tech sector, driving strategic FTTP and broadband innovation initiatives alongside BT/Openreach. Earlier in his career he established KTL’s US Operations from the ground up, building the business to multi-million pound revenues.
His background includes leadership roles across international technical bodies, notably President of the Broadband Forum, where he helped guide global standards for broadband infrastructure deployment, and as a Board Director of the UK’s NICC. Throughout, he has built senior relationships across Ofcom, DCMS, Openreach and the major global standards organisations – giving Axians’ customers direct access to the policy and standards conversations shaping their markets.
“Steve is one of the most respected professionals in UK fixed networks, and his arrival is a real statement of intent for our business,” said Anthony Pireddu, General Manager at Axians UK. “I’m excited to work alongside him as we deepen our presence across the service provider and utilities markets. His experience will be invaluable in helping our customers build the resilient, future-ready networks these sectors increasingly depend on.”
His appointment comes at a pivotal moment for critical national infrastructure, where telecommunications providers and utility operators face pressure to modernise legacy systems, meet rising data demands, and maintain high standards of operational security. Kingdom’s expertise in full-fibre rollouts, next-generation optical platforms, and carrier-grade IP routing positions Axians to address these complex technical challenges directly.
“What drew me to Axians is the strength of its engineering heritage and the trust it holds across the telecoms sector” said Steve Kingdom.“There’s a real opportunity to take Axians’ enterprise propositions into the UK service provider market from helping altnets grow Average Revenue Per User, deepening our technology partner relationships, and introducing complementary services that solve genuine operational problems. With the scale of the VINCI Energies behind us, we can deliver that at a level very few can match. I’m eager to get stuck in and cement Axians as the partner of choice in these markets.”
By integrating Kingdom into its team, Axians accelerates its mission to help service providers and energy distributors build scalable, future-proof networks. His deep technical acumen and track record in system integration will help clients navigate complex technical shifts, from 25G PON adoption to grid automation.
About Axians
Axians, the ICT brand of VINCI Energies, supports its customers — private-sector companies, public-sector entities, operators and service providers — in their infrastructure and digital solutions development.
To this end, Axians offers a comprehensive range of ICT solutions and services spanning business applications and data analytics, enterprise networks and digital workspaces, data centres and cloud services, telecommunications infrastructure and cybersecurity.
Axians’ specialised consulting, design, integration and service teams develop bespoke digital transformation solutions that contribute to successful business outcomes for its customers.
ICT Business Lines Figures in 2025: €3.8 billion // 17,000 employees // 38 countries