Aussies urged to collect almost 1 billion USD in unclaimed money

Australians have almost 1 billion U.S. dollars sitting in forgotten bank accounts, according to new data, and the government is trying to reunite people with their lost funds.

The Federal government updated its tally of unclaimed funds to 910 million U.S. dollars on Wednesday, urging Australians to check whether they are entitled to a slice of the money.

Victorians have contributed 150 million U.S. dollars alone, according to the list. While another 75 million U.S. dollars also sits idle in the state government's coffers.

However, the majority of the cash-pool is held by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) in lost superannuation and the Fair Work Ombudsman in unpaid wages.

"There is a wide range of amounts of unclaimed money waiting to be claimed ranging from a few cents to over 1 million (Australian dollars)," Assistant Treasurer Kelly O'Dwyer said in a statement on Wednesday.

"There is 650 million Australian dollars (490 million U.S. dollars) in unclaimed bank accounts Australia-wide."

Last year, almost 120 million U.S. dollars were returned to more than 25,000 people who made successful claims, O'Dwyer said.

The Federal government has set-up a free website dedicated to helping people reclaim the lost billions.

Melbourne IT consultant Martin Foy was one of the lucky recipients last year.

"I received a few letters from parties which, for a fee, said they could find the money, but I went on the internet instead and found it for free on ASIC's MoneySmart Unclaimed Money web page," Foy told Fairfax Media on Wednesday.

"I followed the instructions and went back to find the documents needed to prove the shares were mine - that part was a bit tricky because the business had closed."

"Before long, after my claim was verified, I received the money. It came in very handy because I was between contracts over the Christmas period when jobs are scarce." Endit