How to find forgotten money — unclaimed deposits, dividends, and shares

Old salary accounts that went dormant. Dividends from shares your grandfather forgot about. Insurance policies that lapsed. India has ₹78,000+ crore (RBI's own estimate, FY24) sitting in unclaimed status across the financial system — and the regulator now provides a single portal to search for yours.

Step 1: UDGAM — unclaimed bank deposits

Go to udgam.rbi.org.in. Register with name, PAN, mobile. The portal searches across 30+ Indian banks (SBI, HDFC, ICICI, PNB, BoB, Canara, etc.). If anything shows up, you'll get the bank name and account stub. Then contact that bank's claims process directly.

Step 2: IEPF — unclaimed shares and dividends

Companies legally transfer unclaimed dividends and shares to the Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority after 7 years. Visit iepf.gov.in and search by name + PAN. Most blue-chip stocks held physically in the 80s and 90s (Reliance, Tata, ITC, HUL, ICICI Bank) have substantial unclaimed dividends with IEPF. Claiming back is paperwork-heavy but absolutely worth it for any amount over ₹10,000.

Step 3: Bima Bharosa — insurance unclaimed amounts

Insurers also have unclaimed amounts — usually from policies people forgot, or claims relatives didn't know to file. Use bimabharosa.irdai.gov.in to search across LIC, HDFC Life, ICICI Prudential, SBI Life, Max Life, Tata AIA and others.