With N200bn Unclaimed Dividends, Here’s How to Retrieve your Money through SEC e-Dividend Portal

Did you know that you can retrieve unclaimed dividends belonging to you or your loved ones using the Securities and Exchange Commission‘s (SEC) e-Dividend Portal?

A dividend is simply the portion of profits paid out by a company to shareholders usually on annual basis. If you or any of your relatives have bought shares in one company or more, it is indeed possible that you have outstanding dividends that have not been claimed.

Unclaimed dividends in the Nigerian capital market reached an estimated N200 billion in 2020, according to the House of Representatives’ Committee on Capital Markets and Institutions.

Chairman of the committee, Babangida Ibrahim disclosed that unclaimed dividends had grown by 26% from N158.44 billion in 2019 to about N200 billion last year.

Going by this, it is clear that several investors in the country have yet to claim returns on their investment running into billions of naira. In this article, we take through the steps involved in retrieving unclaimed dividends from the companies where you or your loved ones are shareholders.

1. Apply through the SEC e-Dividend Portal

First, log on to the SEC e-Dividend portal. Click on “Unclaimed Dividends Search Portal” displayed on the SEC official website to begin.

2. Search for a List of Your Company Shares

As required in the search box on the portal, enter your first and last name or the first and last name of the shareowner. Then tap “Search”. You can also search for the full name of a family member.

3. Identify Your Unclaimed Dividends

The system will return search results showing your account number, all the companies where you hold shares as well as the names of registrars for each company. The list would show shareholders with similar names but you can easily identify yours by checking the correct middle name that belongs to you or your relative.

Ensure to check the entire list to locate all outstanding dividends.

4. Download and Fill Your Registrar’s e-Dividend Mandate form

On the “Registrar Name” column, click on the blue-coloured registrar name to download your Registrar’s e-Dividend Mandate form(s).

After downloading, fill the respective Registrar’s e-mandate forms with all required information including your bank name, BVN, bank account number and other personal data. Print out the completed form when you are done.

5. Submit Completed forms to Claim Dividends

Submit completed e-Dividend Mandated forms at the nearest branch of your Bank or Registrar to register for the collection of your unclaimed dividends and subsequent dividends electronically.

At the end of the process, the due dividends will be credited to your preferred Bank Account.