What Is a CHN Number in Nigeria?
A CHN number (Clearing House Number) is the unique investor ID that CSCS issues for shares held in your name in Nigeria. Find yours on your CSCS statement, contract notes or broker account profile. It stays with you when a new broker links to your existing CHN; each broker-linked CSCS account has its own account number. It mixes letters and digits: usually the letter C, then nine digits, then two letters.
CHN Number. A CHN (Clearing House Number) is a unique identification number assigned to every registered investor in the Nigerian capital market, linking them to their CSCS account and share records.
A Find My Shares search looks across registrars, brokers and the CSCS for holdings in your name, with or without a CHN. ₦10,000.
Find My SharesWhy you need a CHN number
The CHN is your permanent investor ID in the Nigerian capital market. It is used to track every share purchase, dividend payment, and corporate action tied to your portfolio. Without a CHN, shares cannot be held in a CSCS account in your name or traded on the NGX.
How a CHN number is assigned
Your CHN is assigned by CSCS when a registered stockbroker opens an account on your behalf. This typically happens automatically when you begin investing through a regulated platform or broker.
CHN and Shares Saver
When Shares Saver instructs a regulated broker to purchase shares on your behalf, part of that process involves ensuring your CHN is correctly linked to your account. This ensures all purchased shares are registered in your name under your CHN.
Your CHN is permanent
Your CHN stays with you. It does not change when you switch brokers or platforms, provided the new broker links your account to your existing CHN. Investors who used several brokers over the years sometimes have more than one CHN, because a broker opened a new one instead; the CSCS can merge them through a broker.
How to find your CHN if you have lost it
Your CHN is printed on a CSCS statement and usually appears in your broker account profile and on broker statements. It may also appear on dividend warrants, e-dividend confirmations and other registrar correspondence. If you cannot find it, ask the broker that opened your account, or contact the CSCS with your name and identification. If you do not know which broker you used, or you hold only paper share certificates, there may be no CHN for those holdings: certificated shares sit on the company's register with its registrar, not in a CSCS account, until they are dematerialised.
A Find My Shares search looks across registrars, brokers and the CSCS for holdings in your name, with or without a CHN. ₦10,000.
Find My SharesQuestions
About chn number
This article is for general information and educational purposes only. It does not constitute financial advice, investment advice, legal advice, or tax advice. The value of investments can fall as well as rise. Seek independent regulated financial advice before making any investment decision. Shares Saver does not provide financial advice.
Lost your CHN, or shares from years ago?
A Find My Shares search looks across registrars, brokers and the CSCS for holdings in your name, with or without a CHN. ₦10,000.
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