Jamen Capital and Merlin have completed their acquisition of Curve Royalty Systems from Virgin Music Group, following final approval from the European Commission (EC).
The sale was required as a condition of the EC clearing Universal Music Group’s $775 million acquisition of Downtown Music Holdings through Virgin Music Group. Curve was previously part of Downtown Music Holdings.
Ownership and leadership
Curve now operates as an independent, standalone business backed by Jamen Capital and Merlin. Richard Leach remains CEO, and the existing management and day-to-day teams stay in place.
Its products, services and client relationships are unchanged.
Services and clients
Founded in 2019, Curve provides royalty processing services across recorded music and publishing. Its client list includes:
- Armada
- Defected
- Epitaph
- Exceleration
- Reservoir
- Sony Pictures Entertainment
- Virgin Music Group
- Netflix
Richard Leach said:
“Completing this transaction gives Curve the independence, stability and backing we need for the next stage of our development. For our clients, it is very much business as usual: the same team, products, service and commitment to protecting their data and interests. What changes is our ability to invest more ambitiously in the future. With the support of Jamen and Merlin, we can accelerate innovation, develop new products and continue building the elite-level infrastructure that music businesses need to manage increasingly complex royalty flows.”
