Over 30,000 iTaukei minor investors benefited directly from last Friday’s dividend announcement by the Unit Trust of Fiji (UTOF), through an arrangement with the iTaukei Land Trust Board (TLTB).
UTOF chairperson Lavinia Kaumaitotoya announced a dividend of 3.75 cents per unit for UTOF’s Income & Growth Fund and a three percent annualized dividend for its Income Fund, totaling $5.77 million and $562,772 respectively.
UTOF, the largest unit trust in Fiji, has over 60,000 unit holders across the country, including iTaukei landowners under the age of 18.
“It’s worth noting that our unit holders represent a diverse cross-section of our society, including over 30,000 minor investors under 18 years old whom we are currently managing in collaboration with the iTaukei Land Trust Board,” Ms. Kaumaitotoya said.
In June last year, TLTB transferred part of the funds it held in trust for iTaukei landowners under 18 years old from HFC Bank to UTOF to diversify the portfolio.
“To understand how the lease monies for minors (landowners below the age of 18) are kept by the iTaukei Land Trust Board, we need to understand the facts and the law that governs the Equal Rent Distribution Policy,” TLTB said when it announced the move.
“At present, a total of 32,941 individual iTaukei landowners under the age of 18 (minors) are currently with lease entitlements at a total value of $69 million.”
The funds, it said, are invested by the TLTB board on behalf of the minors and will be paid out, including dividends, once they reach the age of 18.
UTOF, which has investments in a mix of private and public companies including HFC Bank, Fiji Gas, Flour Mills of Fiji, and South Sea Towage Ltd, recently increased its shareholding in Amalgamated Telecom Holdings through a share-for-unit swap with the Unit Trust of Samoa and also bought 10 percent of SUN Insurance Company Ltd through a private placement before the launch of SUN’s Initial Public Offer, currently open until July 31.