Members of the former First National Building Society - now First Active - should have received a prospectus and claim forms by now for the free shares they are eligible to receive when the company floats on the Dublin and London markets next month.

Qualifying members are entitled to 450 free shares for each qualifying account held, but must return their claim forms by September 29th to First Active's registrars in Dublin.

The value of the shares will be determined by the strength of the stock market at the time of flotation, but First Active has indicated that they could be worth between 265p and 380p each. Depending on which value prevails, each member's windfall could be worth between £1,170 and £1,710. The actual price at which the shares will be issued will be disclosed the day before the flotation on October 5th.

Members are also being invited to subscribe to buy First Active shares up to a maximum of £5,000 for each qualifying account. So anyone who qualifies for two allocations of free shares - say through qualifying savings and mortgage accounts - can apply for £10,000 worth of First Active shares. Members should be aware that even though the maximum £5,000 allocation is relatively low compared to other flotations, depending on the demand, members may not even get that amount of shares.

First Active's brokers, Davy and ABN Amro, have both issued forecasts which suggest the group will continue to perform strongly in the future and should underpin share price growth for investors. ABN Amro expects pre-tax profits to grow by a compound 12 per cent per annum over the next five years with revenues rising by 10 per cent.

Investors should take the current volatility in the stock markets into account if subscribing for shares, and recognise that their value may fluctuate and should be viewed as a long-term investment.

Information can be obtained from the First Active helpline at 1850 818181.