Meghan Markle announces investment in vegan coffee startup Clevr Blends

Meghan appears to have landed in hot water with the royal family by investing in a coffee company. Photo / Getty Images

After a busy year including leaving the royal family, a $130 million Netflix deal and countless charitable endeavours, Meghan Markle has extended her portfolio to investing.

The Duchess of Sussex, 39, has personally invested in a Californian female-founded business which makes superfood lattes.

Small start-up business Clevr Blends produce instant coffee sachets including chai, matcha, coffee and turmeric lattes, with a focus on wellness.

And she's enlisted Oprah Winfrey to help her promote it, resulting in "more than a few raised eyebrows" within the royal family, according to the Mirror UK.

When Harry and Meghan quit their royal roles in January to become "financially independent", they promised they would "continue to uphold the values of her Majesty".

And today Oprah Winfrey, one of the richest women in the world, shared a video on her Instagram page telling her 19.2 million followers she'd received a gift from "my neighbour M", followed by a crown emoji.

A royal source responded to the post by saying, "It is hard to see how emojis apparently trading on royal connections is respecting the values of the royal family."

Harry and Meghan recently moved in to a mansion down the road from the billionaire chat show personality in Montecito, California.

Oprah wrote alongside her post, "On the first day of Christmas my neighbor 'M' sent to me...a basket of deliciousness! (Yes that M) My new drink of choice for the morning and night. Wish I had @clevrblends sooner cause I would've added it to my Favorite Things list."

Advertising rules in the US mean it's not implied Oprah broke any rules by failing to label the post as an ad, nor that she was paid for it.

But palace sources say the post isn't being viewed favourably, especially with the use of the crown emoji.

"When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced their decision to step back as senior royals in order to become financially independent, it was always going to be a balancing act," a royal source said.

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"But what is clear are the promises made at the time to uphold the values of Her Majesty and the Crown, that neither party should be trading on their royal connections to benefit financially or risk bringing the Crown into disrepute.

"All issues such as this are expected to be abided by."

A spokesperson for Oprah did not respond to requests for comment.

The news of Meghan's new investment broke today on Fortune. The coffee company plans to use the investment to scale its business, currently selling four different instant latte flavours retailing for $28 ($39) per packet.

In a statement announcing her work with the brand, Meghan revealed she wanted to support female-founded companies.

"This investment is in support of a passionate female entrepreneur who prioritises building community alongside her business," she said.

"I'm proud to invest in Hannah's commitment to sourcing ethical ingredients and creating a product that I personally love and has a holistic approach to wellness. I believe in her and I believe in her company."

A spokesperson for Meghan was unavailable for comment.