Royal Bank of Canada subsidiary City National Bank has acquired entertainment industry payment services provider Exactuals for an undisclosed amount.
Founded in 2011, Exactuals has designed PaymentHub that enables studios, unions, guilds, payroll companies, music publishers, distributors and other stakeholders to offer direct deposit payments to associated parties.
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It also facilitates tax document management and online reporting to rights holders, performers, service providers and independent contractors globally.
PaymentHub is said to reduce costly paper checks and reporting as well as ensure higher security and transparency compared to conventional payment procedures. All parties can process global payments through their City National operating accounts.
Recently, Exactuals has launched an artificial intelligence-based tool called RAI for record labels and publishers to optimise ownership metadata for the calculation and payment of royalties.
City National Bank chairman and CEO Russell Goldsmith said: “City National has been a minority investor in Exactuals for several years, and the two companies have formed a strong partnership. Mike and his team are highly skilled, and we’re very pleased that they will be joining City National.
“This acquisition builds on City National’s history of serving the entertainment industry, and it is the latest example of our commitment to provide clients with premier service and state-of-the-art payments systems.”
The company, as a subsidiary of City National Bank, plans to serve other businesses, apart from facilitating payments within the entertainment industry.
Mike Hurst will continue to work as the CEO of Exactuals under a multi-year contract.
