SEC set to simplify the e-dividend warrant process.

By Sherifat Oyediran

To help solve the perennial problem of unclaimed dividends, the Capital Market Committee, under the leadership of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has embarked on the creation of a new e-dividend portal, which is expected to become operational on the 30th of November 2023.

Lamido Yuguda disclosed this on Tuesday in Lagos while giving his welcome remark at the Journalist Academy being organized by the Nigerian Capital Market Institute (NCMI).

Yuguda who was represented by Dayo Obisan, SEC’s Commissioner Operations said once operational, the portal will simplify the process of mandating accounts for e-dividend.

Lamido said this would improve efficiency and ultimately lead to a significant fall in unclaimed dividends.

“In furtherance of its efforts to ensure that new dividends do not become unclaimed, the Commission is presently supporting work on an identity management system that would ensure that investors and market participants are properly identified to forestall the problems that led to the accumulation of unclaimed dividends,” he said.

Lamido disclosed that the Commission is also advancing its plans to introduce internal solutions that align with its mission of effective market regulation.

“To manage risk and entrench trust in collective investment schemes(CIS), the Commission mandated that all CIS funds be held in custody. This has helped the growth of these funds from about N1.1 trillion at the beginning of 2020 to about N2.1 trillion at the end of October 2023. We continue to encourage investors, especially those on the retail end, to approach the market through these CIS funds, as they provide investors with the opportunity to have their investments managed by knowledge professionals” he explained.

Lamido further said collaborating with the Central Bank, the African Development Bank, and the Financial Sector Deepening Africa.

 “The Commission had significant progress in Launching a co-location hosting regime for its data centers These data centers will house the Hyper-Convergence Infrastructure, which will serve as the foundation for the Commission’s solutions.

“Establishing robust connectivity through two dependable service providers to ensure uninterrupted availability. Implementing a sophisticated surveillance system to enhance precise market regulation. Introducing a user-friendly electronic registration and returns analysis solution that provides market operators with a simple yet comprehensive interface for compliance reporting,” he analyzed.