Nigeria’s Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced the extension of the deadline for discontinuance of issuance of physical dividend warrants by six months to December 31, from June 30, 2017.
The deadline, which would “mark the end of conventional issue of physical dividend warrants to shareholders of public companies in the Nigerian capital market,” it explained in a statement was extended, following “numerous requests received from the investing public.”
The commission also assured that “in a bid to curb the growth of unclaimed dividend in the capital market, (it) will continue to underwrite the cost of e-Dividend enrolment till December 31, 2017.”
Meanwhile, the statement said a total of about 2.2m investors have mandated their accounts through the e-dividend platform, which would enable collect subsequent dividends electronically, as well as all accrued dividends now to be credited to their bank accounts.
The move is part of efforts to stem and subsequently eradicate the rising incidences of unclaimed dividend in the nation’s capital market.
The extension of the deadlines, the commission continued, “underscores the Commission’s strong focus on market development and enhancement of investor confidence. All investors in the Nigerian Capital Market are therefore advised to take advantage of this extended grace period by approaching their Bankers or Registrars for enrolment before the deadline.”