The Director-General, Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), Lamido Yuguda disclosed that unclaimed dividends rose to N180 billion as of 31 December 2021, adding that the Commission is working to ensure it reduces the level of unclaimed dividends to zero percent in the Nigerian capital market.
He said, “That is a large amount, but when you compare that with the total amount of dividends declared in the Nigerian capital market, these unclaimed dividends amount to about five percent of the total amount of dividends declared. Although five percent is still not the ideal number, it should be zero percent.
“The SEC has been working with the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS), Registrars, and the stockbrokers to make sure that every market appraisal makes it easy for the clients to fill their mandate form. We are also making sure that investors continue to get their dividends”.
Yuguda further said the Federal Government intervened in 2021 by enacting a Finance Act on Unclaimed Dividends Fund.
According to him, “The government is looking at unclaimed monies both in the capital market and the banking system and established a fund that will actually access through dividends that have been unclaimed for a certain number of years that meet certain basic definitions.
“It is not that the government has taken over the money, but when the claimants eventually surface, there is a system for recovering. Every person who has come to the capital market and invested money should be able to get his dividends as and when due”.
