Another day, another development in the Boohoo/Frasers/Mike Ashley saga that’s becoming increasing bitter. 

With Ashley asking its shareholders to give 28%-owner Frasers a seat on the board at Boohoo’s AGM on 20 December, independent proxy adviser Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) has entered the fray, recommending that Boohoo shareholders “vote against the resolutions which seek board representation for Frasers”.

Ashley’s demand for board status was accompanied by a fresh attack on Boohoo’s struggling bosses, accusing the board being “egotistical”, creating a “catastrophic mess” and “obliterating shareholder value and jeopardising the company’s future”. He also warned against a “fire sale” of assets.

In an open letter, Ashley also said Boohoo’s shareholders should “have every right to feel angry and frustrated” at the board’s “mismanagement” in driving the share price down 90% in five years.

However, Boohoo countered saying Ashley was “seeking a board seat for his own interests” and reiterated that its management “is focused on maximising value for all shareholders”.

On Monday, ISS also said that Frasers “has offered a superficial view of performance and no specific plans for change and the two Frasers candidates, Ashley and Mike Lennon, “have real conflicts of interest, concluding that board change at Boohoo Group “is not warranted”.

It said its recommendation is in line with the “unanimous recommendation” of the company’s board.

Tim Morris, Boohoo Group chairman, said: “The board… welcomes the backing of ISS. We are clearly focused on doing what is right for all investors, following the launch of our Business Review to unlock and maximise shareholder value, the appointment of Dan Finley as our CEO and a successful fundraising.”

Finley added: “I believe that the group is fundamentally undervalued. There is no doubt that there is enormous opportunity for the group and I am determined to get back to being a disruptive and industry leading business.”