Prince Andrew arranged a private Buckingham Palace visit for two businessmen connected to a cryptocurrency venture that had agreed to pay his former wife, Sarah Ferguson, up to £1.4 million, new revelations show.
In June 2019, Las Vegas entrepreneur Jay Bloom and his associate Michael Evers were driven through the palace gates in the Duke’s own car for a private tour while the late Queen was in residence. The pair later attended Andrew’s Pitch@Palace business event at St James’s Palace and dined that evening with the Duke, Ferguson, and their daughter, Princess Beatrice.
At the time, Ferguson was serving as a “brand ambassador” for Pegasus Group Holdings, a company promoting an ambitious project to mine Bitcoin using solar energy at a site in the Arizona desert. The scheme promised vast profits but collapsed within a year, leaving investors millions out of pocket. Only a fraction of the planned 16,000 solar generators were ever built, and less than £25,000 worth of cryptocurrency was mined before the operation failed.
In 2021, investors took legal action, alleging that millions had gone missing. A tribunal later ruled in their favour, awarding them over $4 million in damages. Bloom has since sought to appeal the decision.
A leaked contract reveals Ferguson was paid more than £200,000 for her role and was promised a further £1.2 million in bonuses. She was also granted a stake in the company and entitled to first-class travel, luxury hotels, and personal stylists for promotional events. The document made clear she was not an expert on the solar industry and bore no responsibility for any commercial claims made by the firm.
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The revelations have reignited long-standing questions about how Andrew and Ferguson have financed their lifestyle, and whether the Duke exploited royal privilege for private advantage. Both have faced persistent criticism over their business associations and the blurred lines between their personal and official roles.
Amid the renewed scrutiny, Buckingham Palace has confirmed that formal steps are under way to strip Andrew of his remaining royal titles and remove his Windsor residence. The Duke and Duchess have not commented publicly on the matter.