TVC E, BUSINESS – The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has received over 1,500 complaints from shareholders of quoted companies in the last one month.
The complaints bothered on bank charges, non-payment of dividends by some quoted companies even after declaring profits, and delaying share certificates.
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From investigations, SEC had been inundated with complaints from shareholders who heeded the campaign and went to banks and registrars to register for their e-dividend.
The commission had used the campaign to sensitize stock market investors on the need to take advantage of the free 90-day window by registering for the e-dividend platform.
The purpose of the registration, according to the commission, is to reduce the huge amount of unclaimed dividend, which currently stands at over N80bn.
It was learnt that quoted companies and their Registrars were in a league with banks to frustrate the e-dividend registration exercise in order to continue to keep the huge unclaimed dividend.
The e-dividend registration exercise is expected to eliminate the practice whereby companies and their registrars hold to shareholders’ dividend on claims that the owners failed to come forward for their dividend.
