Fuse CEO Alan Chang: The Revolut Playbook of Speed & Ownership, Why Founders Aren’t Ambitious Enough
•January 5, 2026
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Why It Matters
The interview shows how a hyper‑fast, ownership‑centric culture can accelerate disruption in capital‑intensive sectors, offering a roadmap for startups seeking to outpace entrenched incumbents and attract growth‑focused capital.
Key Takeaways
- •Fuse aims to dominate energy like Revolut did banking
- •Speed, ownership, and relentless work ethic drive exponential growth
- •Small autonomous teams with clear goals boost execution speed
- •Prioritize results; replace underperforming teams quickly for momentum
- •Product diversification creates revenue resilience during market disruptions
Summary
Alan Chang, co‑founder and CEO of Fuse Energy, uses his Revolut experience to outline a playbook for disrupting the energy sector. He likens Fuse’s ambition to Netflix’s media takeover and Revolut’s banking conquest, arguing that only a ferocious work ethic and ownership mindset can build a generational company.
Chang cites Fuse’s 10‑fold annual revenue jumps—from £2 million to over £200 million—as proof that speed and accountability win. He stresses tiny, independent squads with crystal‑clear targets, rapid hiring, and a “gun‑to‑your‑head” mentality that forces constant over‑performance. The interview also delves into KPI pitfalls, the need to replace lagging teams, and the value of product diversification that insulated Revolut during the pandemic.
Memorable soundbites include, “If you have a gun pointed to your head today, would you have done more?” and the one‑word cultural credo “Never settle.” Chang credits Revolut’s early culture—late nights, weekend work, and an unrelenting drive—as the template he amplified at Fuse, while also trimming excess values to a single guiding principle.
For founders and investors, the conversation underscores that relentless execution, clear ownership structures, and diversified revenue streams can outpace incumbents in regulated markets. Fuse’s approach suggests that energy incumbents may struggle to match the agility and intensity of a startup that treats every metric as a battle worth winning.
Original Description
Alan Chang, Co-Founder and CEO of Fuse Energy. Alan has scaled Fuse Energy from $2M in revenue in the first year, to $20M the second year to now $400M in the third year. Like Netflix beat incumbents to own media, Revolut beat incumbents to own banking, Fuse will beat incumbents to own energy. Prior to founding Fuse, Alan was one of the first three hires at Revolut where he played a crucial role alongside Nik (Founder) in scaling the company to over $75BN valuation.
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Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:20 The interview process that led to the $150M pay packet
04:58 How Revolut drove speed and urgency in their teams
08:35 You cannot have work-life balance
10:56 What I disagreed with Nik on most
13:50 Is Nik right that Revolut should have got a banking licence earlier?
18:18 Energy Crisis
25:20 Why China is the shining light for regulation to follow
30:28 Interview Process: Green & Red Flags
39:31 Lesson from Nik about ownership and excuses
40:58 The signs of truly top performing people in a team
48:15 You need to work weekends to win
54:00 Every single year we 10x revenue - now at ~$400M
55:45 Why Eastern European engineers are the best
57:33 What People Get Wrong About Having Money
59:12 Quick-Fire Round
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