By Cynthia Ogbueze InvestAdvocate

Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE)-Intercontinental Bank Plc (IB Plc) has reported 180,000 unclaimed dividend warrants by shareholders of the Bank.

This was contained in an unclaimed dividend warrant booklet obtained by InvestAdvocate in Lagos Nigeria.

Mike Aluko, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO) of intercontinental Registrars Limited affirms it is the backlog of unclaimed dividends by small investors of the Bank.

“This is the backlog of unclaimed dividends over the years and most of them are small investors of Intercontinental Bank,” he said.

However, this report Aluko said was made in compliance with Section 382 (1) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, Cap C20, LFN 2004.

As earlier reported in late March 2011, Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reported that unclaimed dividend figure of Quoted Companies has hit N33.92 billion as at December year 2010.

Intercontinental Bank alongside First Bank of Nigeria Plc (FBN), Access Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc (GTBank) and Fidelity Bank Plc top the list of Companies with highest number of unclaimed dividend record.

SEC in Fourth Quarter (Q4) 2010 report available to the public, said First Bank has N19,869,355,139.34, Access Bank N6,152,777,434.37, GTBank N3,610,346,725.63; Intercontinental Bank has N3,032,398,629.45, while Fidelity Bank has  N1,264,557,822.48 unclaimed dividends respectively.

Prior to this time, Shareholders of publicly owned Companies have vehemently opposed the Unclaimed Dividend Bill by the House of Representatives.

Sir Sunny Nwosu, Shareholder Leader and National Coordinator, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN) had in late July 2010 reacted to this Bill by the National Assembly.

Nwosu had affirmed that what determines unclaimed is after 15 months (one year and three months) after which a company is entitled to take back the funds and keep for the investors. “In fact what determines unclaimed is that after 15 months, the company will take back the funds and put it in a save custody for the shareholders,” he said.

Sir Nwosu again confirmed to investadvocate of the existence of a law in Nigeria making dividend unclaimed until after a period of 12 years.

“There is no need tampering with people’s future by passing a law to empower some individuals to take what does not belong to them”, he said.

Before this time, Nigeria’s SEC had affirmed that unclaimed dividend was N2.09 billion as at third quarter (Q3) of 1999, and then the figure rose significantly over the years to about N17.9 billion as at December 2008.

This shows an increase of 756.46 percent (756.46%) in the review period of N2.09 billion in 1999 to N17.9 billion in year 2009 and N33.92 billion as at December year 2010.

Intercontinental Bank recently went into a merger and acquisition and deal with Access bank Plc; which came on the heels of a Court Ordered Meeting in Lagos Nigeria.

From the Special Resolution, following the Scheme of Arrangement dated August 25 2011, the shareholders approved that the issued Ordinary Share Capital of the Bank be reduced to from N9.453billion comprising 18.906 billion Ordinary Shares of 50 kobo each to N1 billion comprising two billion fully paid Ordinary Shares of 50 kobo each through the cancellation of the 5.056 billion shares fully paid Ordinary Shares which were purchased and the pro rata cancellation of 11.850 billion Ordinary Shares of 50kobo each in the Shares Capital of the Bank such that the number of Ordinary Shares to be held by each existing shareholder on the capital of intercontinental Bank subsequent to the cancellation above shall be in the ratio of 1 ordinary shares for every 7 Ordinary shares previously held by the existing shareholder.

The shareholders also approved that the scheme shares shall be issued and allotted as follows: 3,000,000,000 Ordinary Shares of 50 kobo each shall be issued and allotted to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) via a Placing, in consideration for the injection of the financial accommodation amount and 15,000,000,000 Ordinary Shares of 50 kobo each shall be issued and allotted to PSI Limited via Private Placement in consideration of the investment amount; That share premium account be reduced from N146.712 to N0 , to offset the negative retained earnings as at the effective date.