Andrea Frabetti, chief executive of Sunseeker International, has confirmed he is to leave the company. A search is now underway to find a replacement.
Frabetti has not yet formally left his role at the UK-based boatbuilder, and is currently on leave. In the meantime, the firm is being managed by the senior leadership team.
A company spokesperson tells MIN: “Andrea Frabetti remains the CEO of Sunseeker International Ltd. He is currently on a pre-arranged period of leave.
“Whilst Andrea is on leave, the business continues to operate as usual under the management of the senior leadership team.
“Our investors remain confident in Sunseeker International, and we recently secured fresh capital investment from Cheyne Capital and Cross Ocean Partners, providing the platform for our long-term future success. Together, we continue to execute our business strategy and invest in new product development, including the superyacht strategy.”
Frabetti also confirmed the news directly with MIN.
Frabetti, who talked to MIN in September about the company’s outlook, joined Sunseeker International as CTO in 2019 from Ferretti Group, where he was an executive director.
The Sunseeker Group is currently undergoing a restructuring. Earlier in November 2025, it was confirmed that the group will receive new capital investment from its lenders, Cheyne Capital and Cross Ocean Partners, who have agreed to provide additional funding to support the company’s long-term operations.
In June 2025, the boatbuilder announced it was making 200 redundancies – around 10 per cent of its workforce – with Frabetti highlighting “softening in global demand” following “political and economic uncertainties”, particularly amid the fallout of Trump’s trade tariffs. At the time, Frabretti said: “This is not a decision we have taken lightly. We are fully aware of the impact this will have on the affected employees.”
Sunseeker made around 100 temporary layoffs shortly before Christmas 2024 due to “restrictions in its supply chain” and cash-flow challenges. These workers returned in late January 2025, with the yard insisting no staff had – at that time – lost their job.
Italy’s Orienta Capital Partners and the US’s Lionheart Capital bought Sunseeker International from China’s Wanda real estate group in November 2024.
Earlier in November 2025, Sunseeker appointed Mark Chinery as its new sales director and Mario Gornati as marketing and communications director.
The post Sunseeker CEO Andrea Frabetti to depart: group issues statement appeared first on Marine Industry News.
Leave a Reply