Nigeria Borrows N100bn from Unclaimed Dividends, Dormant Accounts

Federal Government has borrowed N100 billion from unclaimed dividends and dormant bank accounts.

Latest figures from the Debt Management Office’s domestic debt stock report list “UFTF FGN Security” at exactly N100 billion as of December 31, 2025. The amount forms just 0.12 per cent of the Federal Government’s total domestic debt, which stood at N80.49 trillion in the same period.

The Unclaimed Funds Trust Fund (UFTF) was created by the Finance Act 2020 to hold idle money from quoted companies’ unclaimed dividends and bank accounts dormant for at least six years. DMO manages the fund with the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any portion invested in government securities counts as public debt.

This N100 billion therefore represents private sector cash now working inside the government’s borrowing programme. The Finance Act makes clear that the money remains a special debt owed to the original owners, who can reclaim it at any time together with any yield earned.

The development forms part of Nigeria’s wider reliance on domestic borrowing to cover persistent fiscal deficits. FGN bonds still make up over 79 per cent of the debt stock, with Treasury bills taking another 17 per cent.

In July 2024, the CBN issued fresh guidelines directing banks to move dormant accounts and unclaimed balances inactive for 10 years into a dedicated Unclaimed Balances Trust Fund Pool Account. Those funds may be invested in Nigerian Treasury Bills and other approved securities, though accounts under litigation or investigation are exempted.

Banks must also publish details of such dormant accounts on their websites to help owners trace and reclaim their money. The apex bank promised to refund principal and any interest within 10 working days of a valid claim.

Stakeholders have long raised concerns about the policy. The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project earlier called on the government to drop plans to borrow hundreds of billions from these sources.

For now, the N100 billion remains a small slice of the national debt book. Yet it shows how unclaimed private funds have quietly become part of the country’s financing strategy.