Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley is renouncing the directorship of Frasers Group and will not be standing for re-election. He will therefore be stepping down at the end of his term, which coincides with the annual general meeting of Oct. 19.
Ashley will nevertheless retain a majority stake, of about 69 percent, in the group and serve as an advisor to senior management – notably to his hand-picked successor as CEO, Michael Murray, who since May is also his son-in-law.
In addition, Ashley will be infusing the company with another £100 million (€114m) in funding, “on the same commercial terms as the Group’s existing unsecured borrowing facilities,” which were announced on Dec. 1, 2021.
The company’s statement quotes Ashley as saying: “Since Michael Murray took over the leadership of Frasers Group earlier this year, the business has gone from strength to strength. […] Although I am stepping down from the Board, I remain 100% percent committed to supporting Frasers and Michael’s plans and ambitions.”
In its unaudited trading update Frasers is reporting an adjusted pre-tax profit of £344.8 million (€394.9m) for the full year ended April 24, 2022, and projects an increase to £450 to £500 million (€515-€573m) for the current year.
