The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said unclaimed dividends have increased from N190 billion in 2023 to N215 billion as at March 2024. At the post-Capital Market Committee (CMC) meeting held in Lagos, yesterday, the Director General (DG) of the SEC, Dr Emomotimi Agama, said the commission has adopted new measures to ensure that issues associated with unclaimed dividends are resolved.
Unclaimed dividends remain one of the perennial issues that continue to affect Nigeria’s capital market despite efforts put in place by the regulator to stem the trend. 
Data showed that the unclaimed dividend figure rose steadily from N2 billion in 1999 to N41 billion in 2011 and N80 billion at the end of 2014. As of 2020, the figure hit N168 billion; it rose to N190 billion. But the SEC DG disclosed that the commission has created a new application that would enable investors to download and access their dividends in real time.
According to him, the self-service technology application would enable investors to have real-time access to their unclaimed dividends at the comfort of their homes.He also added that the commission will create a new unit to manage unclaimed dividends issues.
Agama said the SEC has also improved complaints management through the implementation of the complaints management framework and the establishment of an investor protection fund to restore investor confidence. He disclosed that the commission has so far approved nine new issuances totalling N1.2 trillion in the primary market segment, reflecting increased confidence in the market. Also in the fund management space, the DG said the Net Asset Value (NAV) of registered mutual funds rose by 111.08 per cent to N3.3 trillion, indicating strong and sustainable growth. Agama pointed out that the SEC has, over time, demonstrated its commitment to protecting investors, as evidenced by the recent conviction of a Ponzi scheme operator, reinforcing its stance against market offenders. This, he noted, was a strong statement on the commission’s unrelenting efforts at combating Ponzi schemes.
In terms of registration of market players, he said the bulk of Capital Market Operators (CMOs) and sponsored individual applications that were pending before the coming of the new management had all been processed and concluded as appropriate. He said the commission has stepped up initiatives aimed at ensuring that the rulemaking process of the commission becomes faster and more efficient by defragmenting the rules with a view of codifying them into a comprehensive rule book. In addition, the SEC boss said the commission is presently updating rules on digital assets, putting in place guidelines for the banking recapitalisation exercise, as well as coming up with guidelines for onboarding virtual assets service providers.Agama said the commission is determined to do everything within its power to ensure that more companies enter the market and achieve an all-inclusive market.To this effect, he said the commission would strengthen its engagement with companies, especially the SMEs to create awareness on the benefits of listing on the exchange.
