The Security and Exchange Commission, SEC, has blamed the rise in unclaimed dividends from N158 billion in 2018 to N170 billion in 2021 to the introduction of the Bank Verification Number, BVN, which sought to link actual names to bank accounts.
The Director General of SEC, Mr. Lamido Yuguda, who disclosed this at a virtual post Capital Market Committee, CMC, meeting at the weekend explained investors had in the past bought company shares with false names which has now made it difficult for them to claim their dividends using their real names.
He said: “The truth of the matter is that we have a problem of identity management in the Nigerian Capital market and this is one of the things the commission has been trying to resolve. We have set up a high-powered committee to look at this.
“There are people who have bought shares under false names before. That is what we call the multi-subscription problem. The thing is yes there is a problem with the process and also there is a problem with us as a people.
“If you are buying securities using your own wealth, why would you use another person’s name? Why would you use a name that may not be traceable to you? And most of these things really became an issue after the introduction of BVN, because BVN is tied only to one name.”
He said should any investors have any other name than they are using before, those accounts cannot be accepted by your bankers.
SEC also expressed worry over the amount of monies lost by Nigerians to Ponzi scheme operators, warning Nigerians to stay away from any scheme that promises unusual return on investment.
Yuguda pointed out that “many of these Ponzi operators once they give these mouthwatering promises they entice so many gullible investors and in the end monies are actually lost and these investors actually flock to our offices to complain but they should actually just check our website, two minutes is enough, to ascertain whether this investment fund is actually registered with the commission”.
