Since their father’s fall from royal life, questions have swirled over the finances of Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.
With the York family name badly damaged by the links between their parents, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson, and the late paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, speculation has mounted over whether the sisters can continue to enjoy their accustomed level of privilege.
But Norman Baker, a specialist in royal finances and author of And What Do You Do? What the Royal Family Don’t Want You to Know, his 2019 examination of the monarchy’s money, believes that while Beatrice and Eugenie may face reputational fallout, their personal wealth is unlikely to suffer significantly.
Baker told the Daily Mail that anyone concerned the York sisters could find themselves financially squeezed as a result of their parents’ controversies “need not worry”.
He pointed out that Beatrice, whose husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi is said to be worth millions, owns a six-bedroom Cotswolds farmhouse complete with tennis courts, a swimming pool and a guest house.
The property reportedly cost £3.5 million, while Beatrice, despite not being a working royal, also has access to a two-bedroom apartment in the prestigious St James’s Palace without paying rent.
Eugenie, who is likewise not a working member of the Royal Family, and her wealthy husband Jack Brooksbank, have a home in Portugal and can also stay rent-free at Ivy Cottage in one of Kensington’s most sought-after areas.
Baker added that both sisters are understood to have benefited from trust funds created for them by the Queen Mother in the 1990s, with further arrangements later made by Queen Elizabeth II.
Princess Beatrice and Eugenie’s reputation might’ve suffered from their parents’ actions, but their bank accounts will remain strong, according to royal expert Norman Baker
‘They were designed to ensure the absolute minimum would have to be paid in tax. Their father also set up a trust fund for them.
‘So far, so straightforward, even if both benefit from a set of circumstances way beyond the dreams of most ordinary people. Rather more questionable are their business dealings.
‘You can’t choose your parents. But you can choose whether to follow them down the same track.
‘The disgraced Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was keen to introduce them to some of his unsavoury contacts when they were still young.
‘At her 18th birthday party at Windsor Castle, Beatrice would have been introduced to creepy child abuser Jeffrey Epstein, sidekick Ghislaine Maxwell and convicted sex offender Harvey Weinstein.
‘For her 21st in 2009, Beatrice was given an £18,000 diamond necklace by another friend of Andrew’s, the convicted Libyan gunrunner Tarek Kaituni, who also turned up at Eugenie’s wedding. He is said to have thrown in a contribution of £350,000 to the event.
‘Eugenie also received from the Turkish businessman Selman Turk £10,000 via his Alphabet Capital outfit, and then the following day a personal birthday gift of £15,000, five months ahead of her birthday. Mr Turk would subsequently be imprisoned for contempt of court.
‘The ever-generous Mr Turk also paid over £750,000 as a wedding gift for Beatrice, subsequently returned.
Pictured: Princess Eugenie, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Princess Beatrice leaving Westminster Abbey following the 2011 wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales
The York sisters benefit from trust funds established by the Queen Mother in the 1990s (pictured: Queen Mother and Royal Family outside Clarence House on her 101st birthday)
‘Then there have been the numerous overseas trips by the daughters to dodgy regimes, from where they often came home with expensive jewellery.
‘Beatrice has also founded her own company, the clunkily-named BY-EQ (Beatrice York – Emotional Quotient). In 2024, it brought in about £500,000. It has just one director, a three-page website and no employees.
‘Eugenie meanwhile joined the prestigious Mayfair art gallery Hauser and Wirth where she is now a director.
‘It does not seem a very onerous matter for her. She managed to take 25 days’ holiday in her first ten weeks there.’
Despite speculation about their finances, the York sisters appear to have continued their lives as normal.
Earlier this month, photos of Beatrice revealed she travelled to Rome for a 40th birthday party before both she and Eugenie attended Peter Phillips’s wedding with their husbands.
At the Italian bash, Beatrice danced on tables, ate pasta and drank ‘great wine’ at the £768-a-night La Posta Vecchia hotel in Palo Laziale as she joined the festivities for Juliet Wine founder Lauren De Niro Pipher’s milestone birthday in April.
