The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched a new initiative to help families recover unclaimed dividends, dormant investment accounts, and other capital market assets belonging to deceased investors. The program aims to address the difficulties beneficiaries often face after the death of a shareholder, particularly challenges involving probate, documentation, and outdated investor records.
SEC Launches Awareness Clinic to Guide Beneficiaries
Speaking at a Probate/Unclaimed Monies Awareness and Investor Clinic organized by the SEC in partnership with Meristem in Abuja, SEC Director-General Dr. Emomotimi Agama said investor protection should continue even after the death of a shareholder. Agama explained that the death of a loved one who owned shares or other investments could leave families facing a complicated process of identifying and recovering those assets.
He stated that the SEC’s initiative was intended to provide practical guidance on probate procedures, required documentation, and the steps beneficiaries must take to establish their entitlement. According to him, the awareness clinic was more than an educational program, as it was designed to help beneficiaries understand how to navigate the recovery process and claim assets legally belonging to them.
Probate Remains a Major Hurdle
The SEC DG noted that unclaimed funds and dormant assets remained a persistent issue in Nigeria’s capital market, with significant amounts effectively disconnected from the families entitled to them. He said the regulator’s responsibility to protect investors did not end when a shareholder died. Instead, the SEC must also ensure that beneficiaries can access inherited investments without being subjected to unnecessary hardship.
The initiative therefore places greater emphasis on educating investors and their families about estate planning, probate, and proper documentation while investors are still alive.
Poor Awareness Worsens Unclaimed Assets Problem
The Acting Chief Executive Officer of Meristem Registrars and Probate Services Limited, Ms Nkechinyelu Okoye, identified limited awareness and inadequate estate planning as major contributors to the problem. For many families, discovering that a deceased relative owned shares or had accumulated dividends can come years after the person’s death, making the recovery process more difficult.
Proper documentation and estate planning can help reduce such complications and make it easier for beneficiaries to establish their rights.
What Should Beneficiaries Know?
Families seeking to recover investments belonging to deceased shareholders will generally need to establish their legal entitlement through the appropriate estate and probate process, obtain relevant documentation, and engage the appropriate registrars or capital market institutions.
The SEC’s latest initiative is expected to improve awareness of these requirements and help more beneficiaries unlock assets that have remained dormant or unclaimed. For families, the message is clear: a relative’s death does not necessarily mean their investments are lost. With the right documentation and legal process, those assets may still be recovered by the rightful beneficiaries.
