The Fiscal Policy Reforms Committee has urged Nigerians with unclaimed dividends and dormant account balances not more than 6 years old, to commence the process of claiming them.
Bode Oyetunde, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Finance and Fiscal Matters and Secretary of the committee, gave the advice at the Finance Act 2020 Stakeholder Engagement webinar, held on Thursday, to share perspectives on the implications of the Finance Act 2020, for capital markets and the financial services sector.
The Committee urged Nigerians to begin the process, as concerns have been raised over the FG’s plans to borrow funds from unclaimed dividends and dormant account balances to mitigate Nigeria’s economic challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic through the Debt Management Office (DMO).
“If you have bank balances and unclaimed dividends that are not six years and above, this has no implication on you.
“If you have unclaimed dividends in a company, that is not a public limited one listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, you have no issue. If you do, you can start the process of taking back your unclaimed dividends and if it is a bank balance, go and get your bank balances.
“All these will be done in consultation with the bankers’ committee, CBN and the banks for the unclaimed bank balances and unclaimed dividends, registrars, Securities and Exchange Commission, other regulatory bodies,” Mr Oyetunde said.
He stated that the FG would be transparent with the dividends raised for budget funding, citing that Nigeria’s Sovereign debt management would never be placed in private hands as it is the sole responsibility of the FG.
“Sovereign Debt Management is the responsibility of the minister responsible for finance, and it is the responsibility of government. There is nowhere in the world, I am aware of, where Sovereign Debt Management is ceded to the private sector.
“We have the DMO established by law, and it is supposed to be the minister responsible for finance that will handle his or her duties in the emergence of any debt, and in terms of management of the funds that will be operated by the DMO,” he said.
