Unclaimed Dividend Resolution Software: A Buyer’s Guide for Nigerian Registrars

Entrustt is an API and white-label dashboard that helps registrars reach shareholders who have gone quiet. The SEC puts unclaimed dividends in Nigeria at about ₦270 billion. This guide covers what resolution software should do, what it cannot do and what to ask a vendor.

By Olalekan. Last checked 22 October 2026. General information, not legal advice.

Entrustt works like this: a registrar uploads records, Entrustt works the people who do not respond under the registrar’s name and sender ID, and a person reviews any disclosure. It handles information, never money.

Why dividends go unclaimed

The causes are mostly about records. ThisDay’s August 2025 piece lists holders who never update their details, old paper certificates, estate complications after a death, one person holding accounts under different names, slow mandate validation, and investors who do not know how to claim. In March 2024 First Registrars told Vanguard that dividends of many deceased shareholders stay unclaimed because their representatives do not come forward.

What resolution software should do

Import and de-duplicate unreachable holders who appear under different spellings or accounts.
Contact across channels in the registrar’s own name, with every attempt logged.
Keep a consented contact record so details stop going stale.
Run quiet-period rules you set.
Support heir tracing with a route and checklist for family members.
Require human review before anything reaches a third party.
Keep an audit trail of who was contacted, when and how.
Report reached, confirmed, claimed and unresolved.

What software cannot do

Decide who inherits. That needs documents and often letters of administration.
Move money outside your payment process.
Make the registrar compliant. That stays the registrar’s duty under the SEC rules.

Questions to put to a vendor

Does contact go out in our name and sender ID?
Where is our shareholder data hosted, and who else can see it?
What does a person review before anything is disclosed to a family member?
What does a three to six month pilot cover, and what happens to the fee if we continue?

Common questions

How much is unclaimed in Nigeria?

The SEC estimates unclaimed dividends at approximately ₦270 billion, according to reports of its nationwide campaign in July 2026. The figure is an estimate and the reports give no reference date.

Why do dividends go unclaimed?

ThisDay’s August 2025 analysis names shareholders not updating bank or contact details, estate complications after a death, outdated paper certificates, multiple accounts under different names, delays in validating mandates and investors not knowing how to claim. Registrars quoted by Vanguard in March 2024 said much the same, including that representatives of deceased shareholders often do not come forward.

Can software pay unclaimed dividends?

Software can help find the holder or heir and prepare a claim. Payment still follows the registrar’s and the paying company’s own process and the SEC rules.

Is a next-of-kin record enough to release a dividend?

No. A named contact tells you who to approach. Releasing money to an heir still needs the proof your process and the law require, such as letters of administration.

General information, not legal advice. Figures are estimates reported in the press. Check the SEC’s own texts.