MWC26: Why Trust Is Key for KPN

Why It Matters

KPN’s performance metrics and clear emphasis on security and sovereignty signal resilience amid commoditizing mobile markets and AI disruption; reinforcing trust and local data control could protect revenue and open new enterprise and public-sector opportunities. Strong free cash flow and fiber progress also position KPN to invest against aggressive competition.

Summary

At MWC26 KPN CSO Benji Curtsy said the carrier is on track with its ‘connect, activate, grow’ plan launched in late 2024, hitting €5.8bn in service revenues, roughly €2.66bn in EBITDA and about €950m in free cash flow by end-2025 while continuing a fiber rollout aimed at 85% household coverage by 2030. Curtsy flagged tougher mobile pricing competition and rapid AI-driven market shifts as challenges but said KPN is capitalizing on security, trust and value-added services to differentiate. She framed cybersecurity and sovereign digital services — local infrastructure, data centres and conservative data residency — as central to KPN’s strategy. The company sees trust and network security as a competitive advantage against big tech and a critical enabler of digital economic activity.

Original Description

Benji Coetzee, Chief Strategy and Growth Officer at KPN, discusses the Dutch national operator’s strategic update, the telco’s ongoing focus on cybersecurity and the provision of sovereign services, and why trust is such a big deal for the operator and its customers.

Featuring:

Benji Coetzee, Chief Strategy and Growth Officer, KPN

Recorded March 2026

#telecomtv #kpn #digitalplatforms #telcos #cybersecurity #sovereignty