Home ›› 16 Mar 2022 ›› Stock
Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) Chairman Professor Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam has warned of tougher action against the listed companies failing to transfer its unclaimed dividends to the Capital Market Stabilisation Fund (CMSF) by March 31.
Even, the commission may slap the companies with fines few times higher than the figure of their unclaimed dividends, he said at a programme organised by the Capital Market Stabilisation Fund at Dhaka hotel on Tuesday.
Professor Shibli noted that a number of companies were dillydallying to transfer the unclaimed funds in pretext of various reasons despite the fact that the fund belongs to the investors.
No one can possess the unclaimed dividends and the regulator will find out the money at any cost, he said.
Speaking on the occasion, BSEC Commissioner Shakh Shamsuddin Ahmed said the regulator formed the CMSF to pay back investors’ money held by the companies for long time.
The governing committee of the fund will utilise the money in the capital market properly, the BSEC commissioner said, adding that it would also be helpful for the stock market investors.
The market has been in the doldrums for the last two weeks due to the global turmoil triggered by the Russian invasion on Ukraine.
Against such a backdrop, the BSEC on March 9 instructed the Investment Corporation of Bangladesh (ICB) to invest Tk 100 crore from the Capital Market Stabilisation Fund in the stock market.
The instruction was given to the ICB as the market suffered a massive sell-off due to rumors and commodity price hikes in the global market, BSEC Commissioner Shaikh Shamsuddin Ahmed told media.
In June last year, the BSEC formed the market stabilisation fund using undistributed and unclaimed dividends of listed companies. The aim is to use the funds to safeguard the interests of the stock market and general investors.
The main purpose of the fund is to ensure the settlement of investors’ claims against transferred funds of unclaimed/ unsettled cash and stock dividends.
The fund provides liquidity to the capital market- by way of direct buying and selling of listed securities; through securities lending and borrowing to the capital market intermediary, and by supporting the market maker for the development of the capital market.
On July 6, the BSEC issued a letter asking companies to transfer amounts held against unclaimed, undistributed or unsettled dividends or non-refunded public subscription money in cash to the CMSF by July 30. The deadline was later extended to August 30.
However, a number of companies failed to settle or transfer the unclaimed dividends within the timeframe due to lack of proper documents of the claimants and a dispute between the Bangladesh Bank and the BSEC over the transfer.
