In January 2025, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) estimated that there were R4.5b in unclaimed dividends. To identify who should receive these dividends, the JSE collaborated with twenty large listed companies and launched the national “Claim It” campaign.
You may be a beneficiary of an estate, but the shareholding was never declared when the estate was settled, so dividends weren’t paid out to you.
You may also be entitled to dividends due to your own shareholding. You could have bought shares as an investment or received them as part of your employer’s remuneration package. If you change jobs, retire, change your banking details, or even move to a new address without notifying the company or their Transfer Secretary, your dividends will not be paid if they are unable to verify your details. This becomes part of the unclaimed dividends pool.
There are no hard-and-fast rules, and each company decides on their own course of action. A company can decide that dividends are forfeited if not claimed within three, five, or ten years, and this is documented in the company’s Memorandum of Incorporation.
Although these dividends can be forfeited after the prescribed period, most companies will still pay out the dividend to you, even if you claim it after the prescribed period. Other companies may choose to hold unclaimed dividends in trust indefinitely.
The JSE has set up a portal at www.jse.co.za/claimit where you can complete an online form, and they will check to see whether you have any unclaimed dividends.
You can also call the JSE Claim It contact centre on 0861 401 105 or visit their offices at One Exchange Square, 2 Gwen Lane, Sandton, and a dedicated team will assist you. Shareholder information is stored in a registry at the JSE, and they will need to verify whether the individual was a shareholder and owed unclaimed dividends.
You will need to provide the details of the shareholder to submit an enquiry, whether it is yourself, a family member, or the deceased person:
If a shareholding account is traced, the JSE will request proof of ownership, FICA documents, or deceased estate backing documents before paying unclaimed dividends. To comply with the POPIA, they will not disclose information if you don’t have the necessary information to submit an enquiry or claim.
The JSE “Claim It” campaign is a voluntary initiative, so participation isn’t mandatory. Currently, 20 companies are collaborating with the JSE to make their shareholder data available for tracing and claims. Many listed companies also have their own tracing and investor engagement efforts in place.
More companies may join the campaign in future to further expand the reach and impact of this initiative.
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COMPANIES IN THE CLAIM IT CAMPAIGN
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