Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reinforced its earlier directives to shareholders of defunct Skye Bank to claim their dividend payment.
This, SEC said, is part of its investor protection programme as well as designed to ensure shareholders get the benefits of investing in the capital market.
According to the acting Director General, Ms. Mary Uduk, in an interview in Abuja, the SEC recently released a circular to shareholders of defunct Skye Bank to claim all outstanding dividends.
She said: “We have informed shareholders of the defunct Skye Bank that unclaimed dividends declared by the bank are being held in trust on their behalf. This will further help reduce the volume of unclaimed dividends in the market and boost investor confidence.
“Investors that have unclaimed dividends are therefore advised to contact Cardinalstone Registrars to process their dividend payments.”
Uduk said the Commission has also directed Cardinalstone Registrars and STL Trustees to ensure that all genuine claims of beneficiary shareholders are addressed forthwith.
The acting DG said since the company is no longer in operation, these unclaimed dividends have to be made available to the rightful owners that are the shareholders, as that will go a long way in boosting investor confidence in the market.
“They invested in a company and since the company has gone under, there is no reason why they should not have access to their unclaimed dividends. That is why we are calling on them to take advantage of this opportunity and claim their dividends,” Uduk stated.
