How to Claim Your Unclaimed Dividend in Nigeria

Have You Ever Bought Shares In Nigerian Companies in the past? Public offer (Primary) or Secondary Market? Then this is for you.

Several Nigerians participate in Public offers of Nigerian publicly listed companies without going further to register with stockbrokers. For instance, the last MTN public offer in 2022 had over 126,000 investors, according to MTN and Premium Times, but I would be surprised if up to half of such investors have done anything further after that investment. Similarly, GTCO recently did a public offer with not less than 130,000 domestic investors participating in it as reported by Guardian News. 

If you have ever participated in buying shares of Nigerian companies, chances are that you might have unpaid dividends waiting for you to claim (Free bucks, yeah!). Whether it was through an Initial Public offer, Public offer or bought from the Secondary market, if the company had ever declared dividends after your purchase then you are likely eligible to be paid such dividends. This also applies even if the company is no longer existing. The SEC refers to you as "Unregistered Investors for e-dividend".

In case you have forgotten or are unsure if you have unclaimed dividends, you can start by checking on the SEC Website here:  https://sec.gov.ng/non-mandated/

Type in your full name in the search box and click "search". 

UPDATED: Based on recent feedback on the previous SEC website, here is the updated website for unclaimed dividends check- https://eportal.sec.gov.ng/non-mandated

Type in your full name in the "Search shareholder or company" box. If you have unclaimed dividends your details would appear showing the companies whose shares you own, your shareholder account number with them, and their registrars. 

Next step is to register with a Stockbroker because you will require your CSCS (Central Securities Clearing System) account and CHN (Clearing House Number) details to proceed with reclaiming your dividend. There are several of them, and you can check out some below:

StanbicIBTC StockBrokers: https://www.stanbicibtcstockbrokers.com/nigeriastockbroking/stockbroking

Investment One Stockbrokers: https://stockbrokers.investment-one.com/

CardinalStone Stockbrokers: https://cardinalstonesecurities.com/equities/

Your stockbrokers can then guide you on the next steps to reclaim your dividend, which would typically involve completing an E-dividend form for the Registrar of the company whose shares you own — then submitting the completed E-dividend form back to the Registrar or your bank for onward action. Once you become a registered investor with a CSCS Account, CHN Account and your bank account mandated for e-dividend then you would receive your unclaimed dividends, as well as subsequent dividends from the companies whose shares you own. 

Below is a sample of Africa Prudential Registrars e-dividend form.

Alternatively, if you are already registered with a Nigerian Stockbroker (and have both your CSCS and CHN details) you can click on the Registrar of the company as listed in your details shown on the SEC portal above, which would lead you to the EDMMS Self service portal, then you can follow the prompts.

If you are interested in understanding more about the capital market, how to invest in stocks, and other Passive investment vehicles available to retail investors and how you can harness them to grow and preserve your wealth, view the below articles:

• How to Start Investing in the Nigerian Stock Market: A Guide for Beginners
• Before you buy Stocks: What every Retail Investor Must Understand 1
• Warren Buffett's Timeless Investment Lessons Every Investor Should Know
• Passive Income Investment Options: Government Bonds
• Passive Income Investment Options- Dividend Paying Equity (Stocks)
• Passive Income Investment options- Money market funds
• Passive Income Investment options- Commercial Papers
• From Saving to Investing: How to build wealth with Assets, Not a Fat bank account

Happy Investing! Feel free to share this article within your network and keep following this blog for more Personal Finance and Investment nuggets. Click the Home button to view other articles.

SEO Keywords

• Unclaimed dividends Nigeria
• Nigerian stock market investors
• SEC Nigeria dividend check
• How to claim unpaid dividends
• MTN public offer Nigeria
• GTCO public offer 2025
• Stockbroker registration Nigeria
• e-dividend mandate Nigeria
• SEC non-mandated investors

DISCLAIMER: All contents on this website are for informational purposes only and should not be taken as any form of investment advice. Do your own research and contact your financial advisor before making any investment decision. All contents may not be reproduced, distributed, or used without prior written permission.