N99.28bn Unclaimed Pension Funds: PenCom Weighs Options

The National Pension Commission, PenCom, has revealed that a substantial amount of N99.28 billion in pension contributions remains unclaimed as of March 2026. This disclosure was made during the one-year anniversary celebration of the Pension Contribution Remittance System, PCRS, which was introduced to streamline and automate pension remittances. According to the Director of the Surveillance Department at PenCom, Saleem Muhammad, approximately 70% of these uncredited contributions originate from private sector employers, while the remaining 30% come from public sector employers. Muhammad attributed the accumulation of these unclaimed funds to weaknesses in the manual remittance system previously used by pension operators, citing issues such as invalid RSA PINs, missing schedules, and data inconsistencies as primary causes. He explained that the commission has made efforts to identify and reconcile these contributions with their rightful owners, mainly casual workers from construction firms like Julius Berger Plc, who have since left their jobs and cannot be traced. The introduction of the PCRS on April 1, 2025, aimed to replace the manual process with an automated, validated, and digitally traceable remittance platform to prevent errors and enhance transparency. Muhammad outlined the key objectives of the PCRS, including automating contribution remittances, validating employee data, and improving allocation accuracy. He also highlighted the roles of various stakeholders, including employers, pension fund custodians, contributors, and Payment Solution Service Providers, in ensuring the effectiveness of the PCRS. Many pension desk officers have testified to the system's effectiveness in making pension remittances seamless. With the PCRS in place, PenCom is poised to make a decision on the unclaimed N99.28 billion in pension contributions.