A federal court has ordered Proper Group (formerly Utopia Music) to pay $1.86 million following a dispute over the 2021 acquisition of Lyric Financial.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued the order as part of the $8 million acquisition agreement, which was originally structured as a $5 million upfront payment followed by two $1.5 million installments.

The dispute arose when Proper Group allegedly failed to make the second $1.5 million installment payment. The London Court of International Arbitration initially heard the case, where Proper Group argued that Lyric Financial had not met the transaction's terms. The court ruled in favor of the sellers.

The total amount ordered includes:

• Base payment: $1,862,995.54
• Additional interest (calculated from July 3rd until full payment)

This ruling comes amid broader restructuring at Proper Group, which underwent several acquisitions in 2021-2022 that led to various operational challenges:

• Bankruptcy proceedings
• Contract disputes
• Staff layoffs
• Executive changes

Some previously acquired companies, including Absolute Label Services and ROSTR, have since been repurchased by their founders, while others like Sentric were sold to competitors (Believe acquired it for over $50 million).

The court has now "granted in its entirety" the petition to recognize the arbitration award, legally obligating Proper Group to pay the outstanding amount to the former Lyric Financial owners.

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