Meghan Markle makes major dig at Royal Family over 'financial independence'
Duchess Meghan Markle has opened up about her perspective on the importance of financial independence, particularly for women, during a candid chat in Washington
It's been a busy few weeks for the Duchess of Sussex, from her surprise appearance at Paris Fashion Week, where she swiftly stole the show, to catch-ups with high-profile A-list pals, and accepting an award in New York City.
Most recently, Meghan took part in the Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit 2025 in Washington DC, where she opened up candidly on a variety of topics, from her relationship with social media, how she manages a work-life balance, and the importance of "financial independence," particularly for women.
Meghan said it shouldn't be "taboo" to discuss how crucial financial independence is, and her comments come after years of scrutiny on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's major deals, with the desire to make their own money one of the major factors behind their desire to leave life as working royals behind, back in 2020.
During the chat with Alyson Shontell, Editor-in-Chief and Chief Content Officer for Fortune, Meghan was asked about the importance of financial indepence and replied, "Well, financial independence is what gives you the freedom of choice, and I think in this day and age, we all need to be able to have our autonomy, there is a huge element of that financial literacy for that reason that I spend a lot of time on, especially for young girls and their empowerment."
The Duchess continued: "As women, when we're supporting each other, for all of these elements that might not necessarily be the ones that people want to hear us talking about, there's nothing taboo, there doesn't need to be anything taboo about talking about our financial independence, or independence overall.
"As women, we support each other, we are not simply supporting each other's lives, we're supporting each other's legacies.
"That's the piece that's so powerful, when I'm supporting or investing in another female founder, I'm investing in what she's going to do for the culture, for her business, the legacy she is going to leave."
Meghan added: "I don't think it's a conversation we should shy away from."
When Harry and Meghan first announced they intended to "step back" as full-time working royals in January 2020, they hoped to still represent the crown on a part-time basis, whilst working toward becoming "financially independent and moving away from receiving taxpayer funding.
They said in a statement at the time, they wished to "no longer receive funding through the Sovereign Grant", and that "they will become members of the Royal Family with financial independence which is something they look forward to".
However, the model they proposed was quickly squashed by the late Queen, palace aides, and other senior royals, who deemed it inappropriate for the couple to undertake private business ventures whilst representing the monarchy in any official capacity.