Good day.
One of my uncles has paper proofs of stocks he bought years ago and I am helping him to be able to get access to the stocks since it has been long.
Now we have gotten the stock position for each of the shares he bought then but the main issue here is that we want to be able to make the stocks to be viewed and accessed digital we don’t want it to be in paper any longer.
So I sent a message to cscs and the asked me to choose a stockbroker that has mobile app and I have reached out to lambeth, but the are not responding.
My question is, is there any other way to be able to do this so this my uncle can have access to his funds anywhere he is. Also he can’t receive dividend updates since the po box and address are no longer valid.
What can I do here or how do I go about this?
Thanks.
Yes, your uncle can move from paper share certificates to electronic holdings, and you do not have to wait for Lambeth. You can choose another verified stockbroker. His dividend records will also need attention, usually through the registrars handling the companies’ shares. These are two connected jRead more
Yes, your uncle can move from paper share certificates to electronic holdings, and you do not have to wait for Lambeth. You can choose another verified stockbroker. His dividend records will also need attention, usually through the registrars handling the companies’ shares.
These are two connected jobs, but completing one does not automatically complete the other.
Think of Mama Ngozi keeping an old paper record of something she owns. Putting that ownership into an electronic record is one task. Telling the people who pay her income where to send the money is another. Your uncle needs both sorted out.
Since you have already obtained his share positions, you have made a good start. Here is how to proceed.
1. Confirm whether the shares are still on paper or already held electronically.
Send the share position statements to the chosen broker and ask them to check this first.
Some old certificates may relate to shares already recorded electronically. If they are still in certificate form, ask for “share certificate dematerialisation”. That simply means converting the paper ownership record into an electronic holding with CSCS, the Central Securities Clearing System.
If the shares are already electronic under an old broker, the task may instead be transferring them to the new broker.
2. Choose a responsive broker that handles this process.
Use the Securities and Exchange Commission Nigeria’s official website to check registration, and the Nigerian Exchange’s official directory to check trading access. Follow contact details from official sources, not random social media messages.
Before opening an account, ask:
“Do you handle old share certificate dematerialisation and transfers from another broker? Can my uncle view these holdings and place sale instructions through your app or online portal? What documents, charges and processing time apply?”
A mobile app alone is not enough. You need a broker that can handle the old records and provide support.
3. Keep the ownership in your uncle’s name.
Give the broker any existing CHN and CSCS account details before they open anything new. The CHN identifies him as an investor; the CSCS account number identifies a securities account. They are related, but they are not the same thing.
Ask the broker to check existing records rather than unnecessarily creating another investor identity.
The broker will explain the documents required. These may include identification, bank details, signed forms and original certificates where applicable. Requirements can vary, especially where names or signatures have changed. Keep copies and obtain an acknowledgement before handing over original certificates.
You can help with the paperwork, but your uncle should authorise the instructions. Ask what written authority is needed if you will act for him.
4. Update his details with each relevant registrar.
A registrar keeps a company’s shareholder records and handles dividend administration. Find the current registrar through the company’s official investor relations page or annual report.
Ask each registrar to update his postal address, phone number and email address. Also request an e-dividend mandate, or confirmation that his existing mandate is active. This links his shareholder record to his bank account so dividends can be paid electronically.
Receiving an email from a registrar does not, by itself, prove that the bank mandate is active.
5. Ask specifically about unpaid dividends.
Request his dividend payment history and details of any unpaid amounts. Ask what documents and process are needed to claim them. Updating his address alone does not recover old dividends.
6. Confirm everything after processing.
Obtain an updated CSCS statement, check that the holdings appear correctly in the broker’s app, and get confirmation of the dividend mandate from each relevant registrar.
One final distinction: seeing shares on an app does not mean their value is immediately available as cash. To withdraw their sale value, he must sell them, find a buyer and wait for settlement and the broker’s withdrawal process.
The practical route is: verify the holdings, use a responsive registered broker for electronic access, and deal with the registrars for contact updates and dividends. You can start the broker work and registrar updates at the same time.
See lessThe issue is that I don't know another registrars that has app and the only one I saw was lambeth. If there are other who has, I need to know so I can reach out to them and follow the right procedures to make this shares accessed easily.
The issue is that I don’t know another registrars that has app and the only one I saw was lambeth. If there are other who has, I need to know so I can reach out to them and follow the right procedures to make this shares accessed easily.
See lessYou do have other options, but the key is to look for a stockbroker with online access, not simply another registrar with an app. I should have made that distinction clearer earlier. If you mean Lambeth Trust & Investment Company, that is a stockbroking firm. A stockbroker helps your uncle buy,Read more
You do have other options, but the key is to look for a stockbroker with online access, not simply another registrar with an app. I should have made that distinction clearer earlier.
If you mean Lambeth Trust & Investment Company, that is a stockbroking firm. A stockbroker helps your uncle buy, sell and access his shares electronically. A registrar handles shareholder records and dividends for the companies whose shares he owns.
For alternatives to contact, you can start with Meristem Stockbrokers and Morgan Capital. These are examples of firms associated with online share trading in Nigeria, not a ranking or a guarantee of their current services. Confirm their current registration through SEC Nigeria and ask them directly whether they handle old paper certificates before opening an account.
You can send this message to each firm:
“Good day. My uncle has old Nigerian share certificates and wants to convert them to electronic holdings and access them through your app or online portal. Do you handle share certificate dematerialisation? Can you check and use his existing CHN and CSCS details, if available? Please send your document requirements, charges and expected processing time. Will he be able to view and sell the converted shares through your platform?”
That question matters because having a trading app does not automatically mean a firm will help with old paper certificates.
For the registrar side, examples include Africa Prudential, Coronation Registrars and CardinalStone Registrars. However, your uncle cannot simply choose whichever registrar has the best app. Each company appoints its own registrar. He must contact the registrar currently handling each company whose shares he owns. Confirm that through the company’s official investor relations page.
Also, an online investor portal accessed through a browser can be useful. It does not have to be a downloadable phone app. I cannot confirm which registrars currently have working mobile apps or exactly what each app supports.
If you share only the names of the companies your uncle owns shares in, we can narrow down which registrars he needs to contact. Please do not post his certificates, signatures, BVN or account numbers here.
See lessI meant to say that I have contacted the registrars too, coronation registrars, cardinal stones, etc because he owned shares in access bank, uba, zenith bank, afriland properties, union bank, diamond bank, etc. And he used pinefields as stockbroker then. So I now want to help him get all this manageRead more
I meant to say that I have contacted the registrars too, coronation registrars, cardinal stones, etc because he owned shares in access bank, uba, zenith bank, afriland properties, union bank, diamond bank, etc. And he used pinefields as stockbroker then.
So I now want to help him get all this managed easily through an online platform. He will provide all needed but being pointed to the right direction on how to go about is needed. I have contacted cardinal stones and coronation, but they seem not to understand when I say I want to make this stocks management on one platform and so it will be easily acess via an online account or so.
See lessWhat you want is one online stockbroking account where your uncle can see and manage his different shares together. You are not asking for another registrar’s app. I understand you now. The request to make is: “I want to transfer my uncle’s existing shareholdings to your brokerage and access them thRead more
What you want is one online stockbroking account where your uncle can see and manage his different shares together. You are not asking for another registrar’s app. I understand you now.
The request to make is: “I want to transfer my uncle’s existing shareholdings to your brokerage and access them through your online platform.”
That is more specific than asking a registrar to put everything on one platform. Coronation Registrars and CardinalStone Registrars handle shareholder records for particular companies. They are not the same service as a stockbroking account that brings different companies’ shares into one investment portfolio.
Here is the practical route.
1. Start with Pinefields and request his existing account records.
Ask for his CHN, CSCS account number and a current statement showing the shares held through them. Also ask whether they now provide online access that can display his existing holdings.
A broker using manual processes does not necessarily mean the shares are still on paper. Some or all of your uncle’s holdings may already be electronic at CSCS. If Pinefields cannot provide suitable online access, you can move to another broker.
2. Contact the receiving broker’s stockbroking team, not its registrar team.
You can approach Meristem Stockbrokers or Morgan Capital, mentioned earlier, and ask whether they currently accept transfers of existing holdings into their online platform. These are firms to investigate, not a guarantee that their present services will meet your needs. Verify their registration through SEC Nigeria’s official channels.
If approaching CardinalStone, ask specifically for the stockbroking team. Your conversation with CardinalStone Registrars is a different enquiry.
Send this message:
“My uncle has existing Nigerian shareholdings previously handled through Pinefields. We want to transfer the eligible holdings into one stockbroking account in his name and view and manage them through your online platform.
“Can you use his existing CHN, receive an inter-member transfer from Pinefields, and help convert any remaining paper certificates? Please confirm which holdings your platform can display and trade, your document requirements, charges and processing times before we open the account.”
An inter-member transfer simply means moving electronic shares from one stockbroker’s account arrangement to another without selling them.
3. Have the receiving broker reconcile the old company names before processing.
This matters for your uncle’s list. Diamond Bank merged with Access Bank, so an old Diamond certificate should not be treated as a separate share you can simply search for and sell today. Ask them to trace the resulting entitlement.
Likewise, ask them to verify the current status of Union Bank and any other holding affected by a merger, restructuring or delisting. Not every old holding will necessarily be available for trading on an ordinary NGX platform.
4. Get confirmation before moving everything.
Ask the new broker to confirm that transferred holdings will appear in his online account, not merely that they offer an app. Give them his existing CHN before account creation, and ask them to avoid creating an unnecessary duplicate investor identity.
The aim is one main place to view and trade his eligible shares. Dividend records and unresolved historical claims may still need separate work with the registrars.
Your next move is therefore to obtain Pinefields’ statement and send that transfer request to a receiving stockbroker. You do not need to keep searching for a registrar that manages every company on one app.
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