Long-Time Royal Caribbean CEO Richard Fain is Stepping Down

Long-time Royal Caribbean Chief Executive Officer, Richard Fain, is stepping down while the cruise line is still recovering from the COVID19 pandemic. Replacing Richard Fain is finance chief Jason Liberty.

Richard Fain’s Role in the Safe Restart of the Cruise Line Industry

Fain played a key role in the safe restart of the industry when the pandemic wiped off half of Royal Caribbean’s market valuation in 2020. Royal Caribbean formed a task force with Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings that eventually formulated safety standards for the cruise line industry.

Royal Caribbean is the first major US cruise line to restart operations in US ports in June. Since then, the bookings for 2022 are already looking good as travelers are looking to travel once again.

Fain will be stepping down as the company’s CEO by January 2022. He said that “it was the right time to step down” as the company’s operations are slowly inching closer to a full return.

While Fain was CEO for Royal Caribbean, the company expanded its fleet to almost 60 ships. This included several cruise line brands such as Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises.

However, even if Fain will step down as CEO of the company, he will not leave the company for good. He will continue working as chairman for the cruise line and is expected to work with Liberty. Royal Caribbean also announced that the company’s senior vice-president Naftali Holtz will hold the CFO position.

1 Million Passengers by the End of the Year

Royal Caribbean served more than 500,000 guests across its five brands since the restart of the cruise industry in June. The company also expects to get this number to reach the 1 million mark by the end of the year.

Plus, Royal Caribbean anticipates having 50 out of its 61 ships back in service. And by 2022, the company expects the cash flow to turn positive by spring.