The National Treasury is set to take action to address the R88bn in unclaimed assets and benefits sitting in banks, insurance companies and retirement funds.
In his budget speech, finance minister Enoch Godongwana said the Treasury would introduce reforms to manage the unclaimed benefits. It would do this through the creation of a central administrator responsible for record keeping and tracing following recommendations from the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA).
Commenting on the proposed creation of a central administrator for the benefits, director and chief economist of the Efficient Group Dawie Roodt said it makes sense to put the unclaimed benefit into one fund to trace the beneficiaries.
“My suspicion is that the minister of finance is after this money. I won’t be surprised if we get legislation in a couple of years’ time whereby if there is an unclaimed benefit of five years, then it goes to the state,” he said.
“Having said that, it makes sense to put the monies in one big fund. The databases can be combined and by doing that it might be possible to discover more people.”
The FSCA had estimated that the value of unclaimed assets held by financial institutions was R88.56bn in 2022 and comprised 53% of retirement benefits, followed by 38% held by investment and life insurance schemes.
It pointed to inaccurate member information, where members do not provide funds with updated contact details, or where employers do not provide comprehensive details of members and their beneficiaries as reasons for the unclaimed funds.
In a paper on unclaimed benefits, the FSCA had proposed that financial institutions be compelled to transfer unclaimed assets into a central fund rather than a National Revenue Fund (NRF).
The JSE — which launched a campaign to trace beneficiaries of former employees, shareholders or beneficiaries of deceased estates with their unclaimed funds, called the “Claim It” initiative — in February 2025 welcomed the creation of a central administrator.
Vuyo Lee, director for marketing & corporate affairs at the JSE, said a central administrator could streamline beneficiary tracing by consolidating all data into a single and secure system.
To date, nearly 87,000 individuals have requested dividend status checks, and close to 13,000 people have been identified as having dividends due to them
— Vuyo Lee, JSE director for marketing & corporate affairs
“This will allow for assessment of beneficiaries who sit across multiple unclaimed benefits databases, making tracing efforts efficient, and also enriching contact information that will make tracing beneficiaries faster,” Lee said.
She said the JSE’s Claim IT initiative had worked very well across its 20 listed companies that participated in the campaign.
“Beyond record keeping and tracing, the central administrator should focus on constantly educating the market about unclaimed assets, simplifying the verification process through a multi-channel approach, and building capacity by collaborating with credible partners in the tracing ecosystem to build on their successes and adopt their lessons,” she said.
Lee said some of the activities adopted in the Claim It campaign saw the JSE make meaningful progress in reconnecting South Africans with funds owed to them, underscoring the impact of a co-ordinated approach.
She said Claim It has significantly increased public awareness and has catalysed the reconnection of unclaimed dividends with their rightful owners.
“To date, nearly 87,000 individuals have requested dividend status checks, and close to 13,000 people have been identified as having dividends due to them. Through our trusted brand, we have cut through the scepticism driven by an environment where financial fraud and scams exist, and people are sending queries on our portal daily.”
What matters most is that all parties responsible for tracing beneficiaries embrace every available tool, including modern, digitised solutions powered by data and technology. National Treasury is set to bolster the tracing of South Africans owed R88bn in unclaimed assets and benefits sitting in banks, insurance companies and retirement funds
— Jonathan Lamb, Standard Bank head of corporate ventures
She said to further simplify and accelerate the process of claiming unclaimed dividends, “We will be introducing #ClaimItNow, our official WhatsApp channel. People can verify their identity, confirm account details and complete the registration process from the convenience of their cellphone.”
In its consultation with the industry, the majority of players said they preferred to transfer unclaimed assets in a central fund over an NRF. The FSCA said it believed that the proposed central fund would offer better transparency, record-keeping capabilities, governance and accountability than the NRF.
The FSCA said the single fund was also likely to generate value and “efficiency through operating synergies and economies of scale, as well as making it easier for customers to search for unclaimed assets through a single search facility”.
Jonathan Lamb, head of corporate ventures at Standard Bank, told Business Times that South Africa’s unclaimed benefits challenge requires a multi‑pronged approach to accelerate the identification and payment of rightful beneficiaries.
“What matters most is that all parties responsible for tracing beneficiaries embrace every available tool, including modern, digitised solutions powered by data and technology. National Treasury is set to bolster the tracing of South Africans owed R88bn in unclaimed assets and benefits sitting in banks, insurance companies and retirement funds.”
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