How employee shares are held, protected, and independently owned under a Shares Saver administered scheme — including CSCS direct registration, fund segregation, and what happens on a change of control.
Speak to Our TeamEach employee participant is registered as the direct beneficial owner of their allocated shares at the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS). Shares are credited to the employee's own CHN (CSCS Holder Number) — not held in an omnibus account on behalf of all participants. Ownership is independently verifiable at the central Nigerian securities registry.
Employee payroll deductions accumulate in a dedicated trust account established under a formal trust deed — entirely separate from the company's operating accounts. The trustee is an independent financial institution. Scheme funds cannot be treated as company assets, protecting participants in the event of employer financial difficulty.
Every participant accesses a personal dashboard showing their live CSCS account details, vesting schedule, share balance, and dividend history. Employees can independently verify their holdings through any NGX-licensed stockbroker or directly with CSCS at any time — no reliance on the employer or administrator to confirm ownership.
Yes. Under the Shares Saver model, each employee participant is registered as the direct beneficial owner of their shares at the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS). The employee holds their own CSCS account, and shares are credited to that account — not held in a nominee pool or omnibus account on behalf of all participants. This means the employee's ownership is recorded at the official Nigerian securities registry without reliance on the employer or administrator to prove entitlement.
The Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) is the central depository for all Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) listed securities. Every listed share in Nigeria is dematerialised — it exists as a digital record at CSCS, not as a paper certificate. When an employee's shares are registered at CSCS in their own name, their ownership is independently verifiable at the central registry. This provides a level of ownership security that paper certificates or ledger-only records cannot match.
Because shares are registered directly at CSCS in the employee's name, they are not affected by any change in the scheme administrator's operational status. The shares belong to the employee independently of Shares Saver. In a wind-down scenario, employees would retain full access to their shares through any NGX-licensed stockbroker using their CSCS account number. The administrator's role is operational — it does not hold the shares on behalf of participants.
The treatment of unvested shares on a change of control or delisting event is governed by the scheme's trust deed and plan rules. Common provisions include: automatic accelerated vesting of all unvested shares on a change of control (full acceleration); partial acceleration based on time served; or cash settlement at the last traded price. The specific provision must be documented in the scheme rules and disclosed to participants at enrolment. Shares Saver ensures these provisions are clearly documented and reflected in the administration system.
Scheme funds — the cash held pending allotment of shares — are held in a dedicated trust account established under a formal trust deed, separate from the operating accounts of both the employer company and Shares Saver. The trustee is typically an independent financial institution. This segregation means that if the employer company faces financial difficulty, scheme funds cannot be treated as company assets available to creditors. CSCS-registered shares are already legally owned by individual employees and are entirely outside the company's balance sheet.
Yes. Every Shares Saver participant has access to their personal dashboard showing their live CSCS account details, registered share balance, vesting schedule, dividend history, and transaction history. Employees can also verify their holdings independently through any licensed stockbroker or by contacting CSCS directly using their CHN (CSCS Holder Number). The combination of direct CSCS registration and a transparent participant portal gives employees full independent visibility of their ownership.
Shares Saver provides direct CSCS registration, segregated trust fund management, and full participant transparency for Nigerian listed companies running employee share investment schemes.
Contact Us