The Nigerian government has revealed plans to borrow at least N850bn from unclaimed dividends and dormant accounts.
The country’s Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed revealed this on Tuesday as she presented the 2021 budget virtually.
The Nigerian government had rolled out plans to borrow dividends unclaimed for six years in financial institutions.
Ahmed said in a situation the owners of such dividends comes to claim them, the government will make it accessible.
“On the issue of unclaimed dividends and government’s accounts and projections, there would be as much as N850bn to be realised into the special trust fund of unclaimed dividends,” she said.
“Government is keeping the money in trust for the beneficiaries. At any time, a registrar or a bank confirms that this is the true and bona-fide beneficiary of this fund, then government will release from that trust fund to the investor who has it, ” she added.
Access to the dividends has been made easier by the 2020 Unclaimed Trust Fund recently signed into law by President Buhari.