IEPFA Plans AI Feature to Speed Up Low-Value Share Claims

The Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA) is set to introduce a new feature on its integrated portal to shorten the processing time for low-value share claims, according to Moneycontrol report.  

The feature is expected within 2 months and will apply to claims below ₹5 lakh per investor. Such claims make up around 85% of the unclaimed shares held by the authority. 

Large Pool of Unclaimed Assets 

IEPFA holds roughly 1 billion unclaimed shares, with an estimated value of about ₹1 lakh crore. Unclaimed dividends are estimated at ₹6,000-7,000 crore.  

The authority manages the Investor Education and Protection Fund and facilitates the return of unclaimed shares, dividends, and matured deposits or debentures to investors. 

Shorter Timelines After Approval 

Currently, approved claims generally take about a month to be processed and credited to investors.  

With the new system, the processing time for low-value claims is expected to fall to around 6-7 days. Manual approval by IEPFA officials will remain, with automation introduced after approval to handle the transfer stage. 

Claim Verification Process 

Investors must submit IEPF Form 5 with relevant documents to initiate a claim. IEPFA reviews the submission and forwards it to the issuing company for verification.  

The company submits its report to the authority, which conducts a final check before issuing a sanction order. Shares are credited to the investor’s demat account after the order. The new feature will automate parts of the post-approval transfer process. 

Integrated Portal and Policy Focus 

IEPFA launched its integrated portal in September to link companies, depositories and the Public Financial Management System. Since launch, around 35,000 claims have been processed and about 190 million shares returned to investors. Voice-assisted forms are planned.  

Reforms to the claim process have been a government priority, with involvement from the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. Sanjeev Sanyal has previously mentioned work is ongoing to simplify share recovery. 

Read More:  Ministry of Corporate Affairs Reforms 2025: Key Initiatives and Achievements! 

Conclusion 

The proposed feature is expected to reduce delays in returning smaller-value shares while retaining manual checks for approvals, as part of plans to streamline the claims process. 

Disclaimer: This blog has been written exclusively for educational purposes. The securities mentioned are only examples and not recommendations. This does not constitute a personal recommendation/investment advice. It does not aim to influence any individual or entity to make investment decisions. Recipients should conduct their own research and assessments to form an independent opinion about investment decisions.   
 
Investments in the securities market are subject to market risks, read all the related documents carefully before investing.