The 64-year-old's condition had suddenly worsened, said spokesman Les Molloy, adding that his family were "devastated ...He had been doing very well, it's a sad day. I have spoken to his partner," he said.
McLaren was a leading figure in the punk rock scene. As well as the outrageous Sex Pistols, who spearheaded British punk rock, he managed other bands including the New York Dolls and Bow Wow Wow.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
A musical genius
Molloy described him as "one of the 10 most important figures in world music".
"With Malcolm's genius, he took what youth culture was doing at the time and cracked it wide open," he told Sky News television. "I think that did a lot for everyone at that time, and it was a tonic for the nation."
"Let's not forget, he had a very successful career as a recording artist himself, and he was inspirational in bringing hip-hop and rap over to the UK," he added.
McLaren's body flown back to Britain
McClaren's body was to be flown back to Britain, and buried in London's Highgate cemetery, British media reported.
McLaren was a former partner of flamboyant British designer Vivienne Westwood and the couple set up a clothes shop on London's King's Road in the 1970s, which they renamed "Sex" and sold rubber and leather fetish gear.
They had a son, Joseph Corre, the co-founder of lingerie shop Agent Provocateur.
McLaren began to manage "The Strand", who would later become "The Sex Pistols," in 1975. He soon transformed the group, bringing Johnny Rotten on board as frontman after spotting him sporting torn clothes and green hair.
The band released "God Save the Queen" in 1977, and later that year the album "Never Mind The Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols."
They played their last British gig and then set off on a tour of the US at the start of 1978.
McLaren accused of break up
But they fell out and ultimately split during the tour, with the band accusing McLaren of mismanaging them.
Music journalist Jon Savage, who wrote "England's Dreaming", the award-winning history of the Sex Pistols and punk, said: "Without Malcolm McLaren there would not have been any British punk.
"He's one of the rare individuals who had a huge impact on the cultural and social life of this nation."
Savage said McLaren was "extremely evasive" when he tried to get information for "England's Dreaming."
Eventually McLaren did give what Savage described as an "extremely good interview" about his early life which, despite his tendency to mythologise, "told some kind of truth".
