The
commission had said earlier this month that investors could now enroll for
e-dividend payments at banks and registrar branches nationwide through the
online platform. According to
the commission, the development follows the release of a circular on the
implementation of the e-dividend mandate management system portal by the
Central Bank of Nigeria to all Deposit Money Banks on Monday.
The
commission had explained that the e-dividend scheme had been a priority
initiative for the entire capital market in a bid to curb the growth of unclaimed
dividends and improve the overall efficiency of Nigeria’s equities markets.
“The e-DMMS portal utilises NIBSS (Nigerian Inter-Bank
Settlement System) robust document management system to which e-dividend
mandate forms filled by the investor can be uploaded,” it explained,
adding that the e-dividend form could be obtained and properly filled at bank
branches or in the office of a registrar.
In a new
circular to all registrars dated September 22, the commission, which disclosed
that the portal was ready for use, said, “It is
therefore mandatory for every registrar to immediately commence the use of the
e-Dividend Mandate Management System Portal as directives will soon be issued
to banks to discontinue the verification of paper mandates presented to bank
branches.”
According to
the commission, all registrars’ offices/accredited outlets shall be points of
upload of completed e-dividend mandate forms by investors who may alternatively
approach their banker to process their completed e-dividend mandate forms.
It also
said, “Every registrar shall validate investor’s
shareholder account number, name, signature and clearing house number.”
This,
according to it, shall be followed with the upload of scanned copy of completed
e-dividend mandate forms on to the portal for immediate access by the
investor’s nominated bank for the verification of his/her bank account details.
In
processing the forms, it urged the registrars to be cautious, saying, “Registrars shall exercise caution when validating names generated
by the system for the clearing house number, shareholder account number and
bank account number against the physical form to ensure there is a reasonable
level of congruence before the document is accepted and saved on the portal.”
Among other
things, the commission said investors should be educated to complete separate
forms for each shareholder’s account number, as upload of e-dividend mandate
forms should be on the basis of individual shareholder number and company of
investment indicated by the investor on the physical e-dividend mandate form.
For seamless
integration and use of the portal, the commission advised the registrars to
contact the NIBSS for the required integration requirements and access rights
to the portal and any further clarifications required towards a smooth
operation of the new system. (punch)
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