The Managing Director, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS), Mr Kyari Bukar, has urged investors to complete all the necessary information in fulfilling the Know Your Customer (KYC) data.

Bukar said this on Thursday at the Town Hall Meeting on e-dividend, organised by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Abuja.

He said that if investors complied with the directive, it would ensure smooth operations in the market and ease stress encountered by investors.

According to him, as at the last quarter of 2015, the data the CSCS kept of all investors showed that less than 30 per cent of Nigerians have completed KYC.

“What that means is that seven out of every 10 persons in Nigeria have not yet completed the information that is necessary for us to say ‘yes this account belongs to this person.’

“Once you fill this information right, what you will get is ease of life because you will get alert when necessary.”

He commended SEC in its efforts to develop initiatives that would ensure increased investor confidence in the capital market

“There is no better way for an investor to have confidence in the market than the two initiatives of e-dividend and the direct cash settlement by the SEC.”

He enjoined investors to fill all the necessary information such as their BVN, account details and all other requirements in fulfilling the KYC with their broker and the CSCS.

Alhaji Suleiman Barau, the Coordinator, Financial System Strategy (FSS 2020) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), said the e-dividend was part of the initiative of the FSS 2020.

Barau said, “We are studying SEC’s 10 year master plan at the FSS 2020 secretariat with the view to adopting it and partnering with them to see its successful implementation.”

“We will engage all the major stakeholders in the financial system to put action to all the strategies that the various financial sectors are coming up with

“I am happy to say that among all the financial system implementing institutions, SEC appears to be the only one that has a very robust 10-year master plan.

“We will take a cue from this and encourage other implementing institutions to equally come up with such initiative.”

The Director-General of SEC, Mr Mounir Gwarzo, reiterated that the issue of unclaimed dividends had been a major issue in the Nigeria Capital Market.

Gwarzo said the e-dividend would resolve delays from the post office; save the cost of transportation, and ensure direct cash settlement to investors.

He urged investors to take advantage of the 90 days grace of free registration and register so they could get their dividends electronically.

The event was attended by the Committee of Heads of the Bank Operations, market women associations, Institute of Capital Market Registrars and various stakeholders in the industry. (NAN)

•Photo shows CSCS MD, Kyari Bukar.

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