By Abubakar Yunus
The Securities and Exchange Commission has intensified efforts to help Nigerians recover unclaimed monies and inherited investments, saying thousands of investors and beneficiaries remain unaware that funds belonging to them are still trapped in the nation’s capital market.
The commission said it would educate investors on the procedures for reclaiming such investments through a nationwide awareness campaign aimed at strengthening investor protection and boosting confidence in the capital market.
The initiative will commence with the Probate and Unclaimed Monies Awareness and Investor Clinic scheduled for August 6, 2026, at the SEC headquarters in Abuja.
The programme, organised in collaboration with Meristem Registrars and Probate Services Limited, is themed, ‘Probate and Unclaimed Monies Awareness and Investor Clinic.’
Speaking on the initiative, the Director-General of the SEC, Dr Emomotimi Agama, said the campaign was designed to help investors and beneficiaries understand the process for recovering investments due to them.
“Investor protection remains at the heart of the Commission’s mandate. Through this awareness campaign and Investor Clinic, we are bringing regulators and market operators together to help investors and beneficiaries understand the claims process, recover investments due to them and strengthen public confidence in the Nigerian capital market,” Agama said.
The commission disclosed that many investors and beneficiaries across the country remain unaware that they may be entitled to unclaimed funds arising from scheme considerations, return monies or investments inherited from deceased relatives.
It attributed the situation largely to poor awareness of the documentation and procedures required to process such claims.
According to the SEC, the one-day event will assemble representatives of key institutions involved in investor protection, estate administration and capital market operations to provide practical guidance on recovering unclaimed investments.
The commission urged investors with outstanding capital market claims, shareholders with unclaimed monies resulting from mergers, acquisitions or unallotted securities, beneficiaries of deceased investors, executors and administrators of estates, legal practitioners, investment advisers and prospective investors to participate in the programme.
It stressed that attendance at the investor clinic would be free.
The SEC also warned members of the public against dealing with unregistered operators, insisting that all legitimate investment claims must be processed only through SEC-registered market operators.
The commission reaffirmed its commitment to promoting a fair, transparent and inclusive capital market where investors are well informed, their rights are protected and confidence in the market continues to grow.
Never miss a moment! Get the stories shaping Nigeria, delivered straight to your phone. Follow Peoplesdaily Newspaper on WhatsApp for breaking news, exclusive reports, and the headlines everyone will be talking about, before anyone else.
