Tinubu’s nominee Obehi Okafor co-chairman unclaimed dividends’ funds

The presidential nominee for the co-chairmanship position on the board of the Unclaimed Funds Trust Fund, Obehi Okafor, has assured the Senate that she will make productive investments of the fund if her appointment is confirmed. The nominee gave the assurance during her screening by the Senate Committees on Finance, Banking, Insurance, and other Financial Institutions.

An unclaimed funds trust fund is a government-managed fund, like the one established by Nigeria’s Finance Act 2020, where unclaimed dividends and dormant account balances are transferred after a specified period of inactivity (e.g., six years).

The purpose is to make these funds available for government use, with the stipulation that the original owners can claim their money from the government later, although the process for claiming it can be unclear. While the government manages and potentially invests the funds, the funds are held in trust for the rightful owners until they are claimed. Explaining her mission for the fund, Ms Okafor said it will be capital preservation-driven by productive investment, all aimed at expanding the country’s fiscal landscape.

“My mission with the unclaimed funds is capital preservation. Aside from governance, I will optimise the returns of the unclaimed funds. Unclaimed funds are of two-fold. Money is deposited in banks, dormant accounts for at least six years and above. Also, the dividends of companies, publicly listed companies, on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, six years and above. Those funds, cumulatively, will come under the trust fund, which I will be co-chairman of,” said Ms Okafor.

She added, “We need to productively invest those funds. As they come to us, we… maximise returns, but we also manage the risk prudently as we invest the funds. Instead of sitting idly, the federal government will have access to it to expand the fiscal landscape of the country. Earlier, before her presentation, the chairmen of the committees, Sani Musa and Adetokunbo Abiru, asked her to justify her nomination by explaining her mission for the unclaimed fund. The report on the screening exercise will be presented to the Senate by the joint committee on Tuesday for final consideration and confirmation of appointments.