Chris Rozell, Managing Partner at Cresta, joins us to discuss his journey from portfolio exec to founding a PE firm, scaling businesses to billions, and investing in decarbonization-focused infrastructure. He shares pragmatic insights on ESG, early-stage infra, and building trust with management teams—plus how Cresta bridges the gap between VC and large infra players. [00:00] Chris Rizel, Managing Partner at Cresta, on infra investing, founding a PE firm, LP returns, and ESG. [00:29] Early career: banking, power, then scaling Regency to billions and launching Cresta. [01:49] Lessons from CCO role—scaling a PE-backed startup to public exit. [02:40] Real leadership is learned in the trenches, not in transactions. [04:33] Portfolio vs. PE firm: loss of customer insight, importance of trust. [06:24] Mistake: avoiding early-stage infra. Cresta tackles it head-on. [08:20] Built Cresta Fund Services to support early-stage founders. [09:18] Go all-in on early infra—don’t dabble. [10:17] Why decarbonization? Deep sector knowledge, big opportunity. [11:44] Focused on waste, ag, logistics, and industry—high emission areas. [12:43] Not impact-first. Returns come from low-cost, proven tech. [14:08] Avoid high-cost hype. Stick to scalable, pragmatic solutions. [15:35] Investing in “dirty” sectors to drive green efficiency and profit. [16:56] Strategy: build from scratch, bridge gap between VC and big infra. [18:21] Targeting the “missing middle” — commercial but small-scale tech. [19:48] De-risk, scale, exit to strategics or infra roll-ups. [21:41] Trends like RNG and biofuels are consolidating—Cresta’s in it. [23:37] Long-term contracts appeal to infra buyers—interest growing. [24:01] ESG: take a pragmatic, cost-first approach. [25:27] Climate’s real, but so are other global issues—balance the spend. [26:51] Keep climate solutions affordable to avoid wider harm. [27:18] Influences: Founders Podcast, Acquired, stoicism. [29:10] Stoic mindset: control your response, not external events. Connect with Chris Rozzell on LinkedIn . Thanks for tuning in. Subscribe for more episodes on iTunes & Spotify Got feedback or questions? Email Alex at
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