The murky finances behind Fergie’s UK comeback – and the risk to Andrew

The imminent arrival of Sarah Ferguson back in the UK, along with the surprise return of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, has thrust the more problematic members of the Royal Family firmly back in the spotlight. But despite a renewed frenzy of media speculation, few actually know where Ferguson is, or has been, for much of this year. There were rumours that she had been staying with a rich old boyfriend, Paddy McNally, in Switzerland, who died a month ago, aged 88, and that her recurrent money troubles were likely to be sorted after he left monies to her in his will. Much has, however, been going on behind the scenes. According to my sources, Ferguson has spent the last nine months abroad, paid for by various contacts in the Middle East and Argentina – moving between Ireland, Argentina and her daughter Eugenie near Lisbon. While in Portugal to visit her new granddaughter, Adelaide, this month, I am told she also saw the Duke and Duchess of Sussex who have a house nearby and remain friendly with Eugenie. Her extended absence from the UK began just after Christmas 2025, when she checked herself into a Swiss health spa. In the early weeks of 2026 material was published showing the extent of Ferguson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. And at the start of February she effectively lost her British home after her former husband, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, was evicted from Royal Lodge where Ferguson had continued to live with him despite being divorced in 1996. Since then, according to my sources, Ferguson has moved around with the knowledge of members of the Royal Family and various British state agencies. Family loyalties divided It is true McNally, a Formula One tycoon who was in a relationship with Ferguson in the 1980s, before she married Andrew, had been a benefactor. But he had increasingly tired of Ferguson who he viewed as taking advantage of his hospitality and I understand he has not left her anything in his will. Much has been made of their relationship which was never an entirely happy one. McNally was a compulsive womaniser and remained one. He treated Ferguson badly – publicly cuckolding her and teasing her about her weight. It was only after she realised that he had no intention of marrying her – after she had renewed acquaintance with Andrew in the summer of 1985 – that she began to seriously date the Queen’s second son. Ferguson appears to have played on McNally’s guilt at treating her badly and she stayed at his properties near St Tropez and in Verbier on a regular basis until recently. Sarah Ferguson at Royal Ascot in 2025. Her extended absence from the UK began just after Christmas that year (Photo: Mark Cuthbert/Getty) While the tripod of Ferguson and her daughters may appear less sturdy than it was, she remains close, in particular, to Beatrice who was deputed to attend McNally’s funeral on her behalf. Those close to the family say the daughters walk a tightrope between familial loyalty and a desire to keep in with the King, not least for fear about the future of their titles and the effect their royal status has on their commercial opportunities. There is little chance of them voluntarily relinquishing their titles but their worry remains that they will be stripped of them when William comes to the throne. Both York husbands are said to be appalled at the continuing scandals surrounding their in-laws which have inevitably affected their own public profiles, especially Beatrice’s husband, Edo Mapelli Mozzi, whose property and design business has benefited from the profile afforded by his semi-royal status. Chaotic financial affairs Ferguson also faces questions over her business affairs. Companies House records relating to her financial interests have recorded her under names including “Margaret Ferguson” and “Margaret York”. The reason for the discrepancies is unclear. The Charity Commission is looking at a number of charities she and Eugenie ran as well as a charitable foundation linked to a failed tech start-up, vVoosh, with which Ferguson was involved with boyfriend and business partner Manuel Fernandez. The business in which she had invested went into administration last year without ever launching any products, having taken £9m from investors including £1m in tax credits from the government. Fernandez went abroad.Neither Ferguson nor Fernandez have commented since the story initially broke last December. In May, Fernandez told the BBC he “strongly disputed” allegations about his conduct and the financial position of vVoosh. There is also the case of Gate Ventures, a company which paid Ferguson £72,000 as a director to attend two board meetings a year and £200,000 for “marketing and promotion”. She also received a £90,000 “loan” for her company Ginger & Moss. Gate Ventures went into administration despite having raised millions of pounds from small Chinese investors. A May 2026 liquidator’s report indicates that investigators are optimistic about recovering funds for investors who lost money in the company’s collapse. Interview rumours The Palace must remain concerned about Ferguson. Hitherto there has been a policy of containment and of keeping her inside the tent for fear of what royal secrets she might spill. Having been banished while Prince Philip was alive, after his death she found herself invited to Sandringham for Christmas, to Ascot and the royal box at Wimbledon. Now with rumours swirling that she has been in talks with American publishers and various television companies – I was told she turned down a £1m offer from one TV company with whom she has worked before because it was too low – the worry within royal circles must surely be that she is out for revenge as well as payday. Until now the royals’ control over her was the future of her daughters but if they are to lose their titles or at least be marginalised by the Royal Family – no invitation to Ascot this year – then the gloves would be off. Ferguson and Andrew were once said to be ‘the happiest divorced couple in the world’ (Photo: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty) Andrew must also be worried. Sources vary on whether “the happiest divorced couple in the world” remain close. There are more numbers for Ferguson in Epstein’s black book than for Andrew and she continued to regularly stay at Epstein’s properties long after she had publicly disowned him in 2011. The latest press coverage from the Epstein releases shows she was encouraging British socialite Victoria Hervey and others to discredit Virginia Giuffre and other Epstein victims. What does the future hold for her? At the moment, sources tell me, Ferguson is being protected but at some point she will have to face the music and surely will have to be interviewed by the police about what she knows. Though I’m told many emails and hard drives no longer exist, there will inevitably be members of staff and victims who will be able to verify her involvement with the man she called a “supreme friend” and “brother”. She has money. BBC Panorama previously reported a memo from a Swiss bank explicitly referenced “gifts from Middle Eastern nationals” to “members of the York family” totalling over £1.2m. The memo did not name the princesses individually but listed “two female adults, children of the Duke”. Coutts bank (owned by Swiss-based RBS at the time) flagged deposits from Russian and Kazakh accounts into accounts shared by Ferguson and her daughters. A former employee said six-figure sums were involved. Sources claim she will shortly be renting a six-bedroom house at £10,000 a month, possibly in Surrey, paid for by a benefactor. A spokesperson for Sarah Ferguson declined to comment. They said they disputed some of the claims above but would not clarify further. Buckingham Palace declined to comment. Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice and have all been contacted for comment.