South Africa is sitting with tens of billions of rand in financial assets that legally belong to individuals but have not yet been claimed, prompting renewed attention from regulators and industry players.
Key Takeaways
- Recovery plan in progress: The financial regulator is developing a national strategy to release unclaimed retirement, severance and death benefits.
- Funds are confirmed and payable: The FSCA has verified that a large portion of these assets is legally owed but still unclaimed.
- Billions remain outstanding: Unclaimed benefits stood at about R88 billion in 2025, underscoring the urgency of intervention.
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Regulator Moves To Unlock Billions In Unclaimed Retirement And Benefit Funds
The country’s financial sector watchdog is currently working on a coordinated national strategy aimed at unlocking and distributing these unclaimed funds, which largely relate to retirement benefits, severance payouts and death-related claims.
In 2025, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority, commonly referred to as the Financial Sector Conduct Authority, confirmed that a significant portion of these assets remains untouched despite being payable to beneficiaries.
According to the FSCA Commissioner, Unathi Kamlana, unclaimed benefits owed to South Africans were estimated at approximately R88 billion at the time, highlighting the scale of the issue and the urgency behind regulatory intervention.
Scale Of The Unclaimed Assets Problem
Analysts from Nedbank have provided further insight into where most of this money is located across the financial system.
They indicated that unclaimed retirement benefits alone account for more than half of the total value of undiscovered assets in the country.
Specifically, retirement fund benefits represent around 53% of all unclaimed assets, while the collective investment scheme sector and the life insurance industry together account for roughly 38% of the total value.
Retirement fund assets often become unclaimed after employees change jobs multiple times without consolidating or tracking their pension savings.
The FSCA later confirmed updated figures showing that the problem has not diminished.
Recent data indicates that more than 4.3 million individuals are listed as members with unclaimed retirement benefits, collectively valued at over R51 billion.
The regulator noted that former retirement fund members do continue to come forward to claim what is owed to them, suggesting that awareness efforts are having some effect.
However, despite these ongoing claims, the overall value of unclaimed retirement funds continues to rise, which strongly suggests that a large number of South Africans remain unaware that they are entitled to these benefits.
Why Unclaimed Funds Keep Growing
Further insight into this trend was provided by Reunyte, previously known as Robin Hood Unclaimed Benefits.
Reunyte is a South African fintech firm specialising in tracing, verifying and reconnecting individuals with unclaimed financial assets such as pension benefits, investments and company shares.
The company explained to BusinessTech that unclaimed pension benefits alone had increased from R47 billion to R51 billion over a relatively short period.
When all asset categories are considered together, the total value of unclaimed funds in South Africa has now reached an estimated R90 billion.
Unclaimed funds are defined as financial assets that a beneficiary is legally entitled to receive but has not yet collected or accessed.
These funds can be held across a wide range of financial instruments and accounts, including:
- Bank accounts and deposits
- Uncashed cheques
- Shares and bonds
- Insurance policy payouts
- Retirement and provident fund benefits
In many cases, assets are classified as unclaimed when they remain untouched for a period of 24 months after the beneficiary becomes eligible to receive them.
Reasons Assets Go Unclaimed
The FSCA has identified several recurring reasons why so many South Africans fail to claim money that is rightfully theirs.
These include:
- Failure to update contact details with employers or financial institutions
- Poor record-keeping by retirement funds and administrators
- Employers not properly exiting employees from benefit schemes
- Changes or closures among intermediaries and fund administrators
- Death of members where beneficiaries are unaware of policies or funds
Many unclaimed benefits date back decades and involve funds that no longer exist under their original names.
Where Unclaimed Funds Typically Originate
Retirement Plans
One of the most common sources of unclaimed assets is retirement funds.
These funds are owed to individuals who were previously members of pension, provident or retirement annuity schemes but never received their final payouts after leaving employment.
This often happens when employees resign, are retrenched or change jobs and do not complete withdrawal or transfer processes.
Bank Deposits
Unclaimed assets also arise from dormant bank accounts.
In some cases, individuals deposit money into savings or transactional accounts and then forget about them entirely.
If accounts remain inactive for long periods, or if account holders move, change contact details or pass away, banks may struggle to trace the rightful owners or beneficiaries.
Unclaimed Insurance Claims
Insurance-related assets are another major contributor to unclaimed funds.
This occurs when insurance companies are liable to pay out claims, but the beneficiaries never submit claims or cannot be located.
Such situations can arise across multiple policy types, including:
- Life insurance
- Health insurance
- Motor vehicle insurance
Investments
Unclaimed funds may also stem from investments held in collective investment schemes.
If investors lose documentation, fail to update personal details, or simply forget about older investments, these assets can remain unclaimed for years.
This is particularly common with legacy unit trusts or employer-linked investment products.
Unclaimed Securities
Shares and bonds can also become unclaimed assets.
This often happens when dividends are not paid out due to outdated contact details or when shareholders fail to cash dividend payments.
In some cases, individuals may not even realise they hold shares, especially if they were allocated through past employment or inheritance.
Other Sources
A range of other assets may also fall into the unclaimed category, including:
- Uncashed cheques
- Dormant bank accounts
- Contents of forgotten safe deposit or safekeeping boxes
These assets may be held by banks, employers, government departments or retail organisations.
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How South Africans Can Check If They Are Owed Money
South Africans who want to determine whether they are entitled to any unclaimed assets can make use of tools provided by the FSCA.
The regulator offers a search facility that allows for both partial and full searches of unclaimed benefits.
To use this service, individuals are required to submit basic identifying information, including:
- Full name and surname
- South African identification number
- Name of the fund, if known
- Name of the employer, where applicable
If a potential match is identified, the FSCA will provide contact details for the relevant fund or administrator to allow the claimant to proceed.
Private Sector Solutions
In addition to regulatory tools, Reunyte has partnered with Standard Bank to streamline access to unclaimed benefits.
The Reunyte platform operates through a digital application, enabling verified users to search, track and claim eligible assets more efficiently.
Summary Of Key Sources Of Unclaimed Funds
| Asset Type | Common Reason For Being Unclaimed |
|---|---|
| Retirement Funds | Job changes, incomplete exits, lost records |
| Bank Accounts | Dormant accounts, death, outdated details |
| Insurance Policies | Unclaimed payouts, unaware beneficiaries |
| Investments | Forgotten holdings, lost documentation |
| Shares And Bonds | Unpaid dividends, outdated contact details |
As awareness grows and access to tracing tools improves, regulators and industry players hope that more South Africans will step forward to reclaim money that is already legally theirs.
Conclusion
The scale of unclaimed financial assets in South Africa highlights a growing disconnect between beneficiaries and the funds legally owed to them, particularly within retirement and benefit schemes. While the regulator’s move to implement a coordinated recovery strategy is a critical step forward, the persistence of billions of rand in unclaimed benefits shows that awareness and administrative follow-through remain major challenges. Improving record keeping, strengthening tracing mechanisms and encouraging individuals to actively check their entitlement will be essential if these funds are to be returned to their rightful owners and reintegrated into the broader economy.
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