By InvestAdvocate                                                                         

Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE)-The Investors’ Protection Fund (IPF) board of trustees said on Monday actual value of loss of 379 verified claimants is N1.694 billion.

The IPF board of trustees at a media parley disclosed 154 of the 379 claimants verified by identity verification consultants have been approved for payment.

The board said a total sum N40.63 million is payable to the 154 claimants whose identities have been verified by the identity verification consultants.

According to the IPF board of trustees, out of the total number of 154 claimants, 81 will be paid full value of the loss of their investments; 73 will receive below full value of the loss of their investments and 78 claimants will receive exactly N400, 000 being full value of loss and below full value of loss.

The IPF board further disclosed that 23 claimants have been paid a total sum of N7.282 million as at August 17, 2015.

It affirmed that the highest claim so far before the IPF is N185 million; while the lowest is N1, 400.

At the parley, Fubara Anga, vice chairperson, IPF board of trustees in his address said they researched global best practices and based on their findings, took decisions on various issues regarding the IPF, benchmarking its processes and procedures against other international investors’ protection funds.

“First of all, we put in place an appropriate corporate governance structure for the Fund; we adopted Rules for the IPF and then following transparent and auditable selection processes, we appointed auditors as well as identity verification consultants. We then commenced the process of identifying claimants and verifying their claims,” he affirmed.

Oscar Onyema, chief executive officer (CEO) of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and a member of the IPF board of trustees representing the NSE said the idea gives him great pleasure as it affirms the NSE’s commitment to the continuous development of initiatives that will bolster confidence in the capital market.

He added that though the compensation payment may not be a complete restoration, it is a show of good faith on the part of the Exchange to investors.

The idea of the IPF was hatched at a meeting held on January 29, 2012 by the National Council of NSE where it resolved to take the necessary steps to establish a fund to be known as the Investors’ Protection Fund pursuant to the provisions of section 197 of the Investments and Securities Act (ISA).