Mary Uduk, the Acting Director General(DG) of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), called on shareholders of the defunct Sky bank now Polaris bank to claim their accrued dividends from their former investments.
In a statement released by the Agency on Sunday 3oth, June 2019 Uduk adverted attention of them to show interest in all their outstanding dividends. She informed shareholders of the defunct Skye bank that unclaimed dividends declared by the bank were being held in trust on their behalf. This will according to her, further help reduce the volume of unclaimed dividends in the market and boost investor confidence.
The DG also disclosed that the commission had directed Cardinalstone Registrars and STL Trustees to ensure that all genuine claims of beneficiary shareholders were addressed forthwith. Arguing that, since the company is no longer in operation, these unclaimed dividends have to be made available to the rightful owners who in this case are the shareholders.
It can be recalled that in September 2018 Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) revoked the operating license of Skye Bank PLC as well as approved its immediate acquisition by Polaris Bank Plc.
It was gathered that as at the time Skye Bank PLC was taken over by CBN and its subsequent acquisition by Polaris bank PLC, the bank had a negative net asset worth of N1 trillion which constituted a sad commentary on the capital requirement of N25 billion for banks to operate in Nigeria.
