Board gender diversity and financial performance of listed deposit money banks in Nigeria

Abstract

The study explored the relationship between the board gender diversity and financial performance of the selected deposit money banks in Nigeria. The  research design used was ex-post-facto research design with a population of 24 listed deposit money banks in Nigeria as documented by the central bank  of Nigeria. The Purposive and quota sampling techniques were used to select the sampling size of five (5) deposit money banks in Nigeria. These  five (5) deposit money banks in Nigeria were selected based on the availability of their annual financial statements. The data were obtained from the  audited annual financial statements of the selected deposit money banks in Nigeria between 2017 – 2021. The method of data analysis used were  descriptive and correlation statistics to test the research hypotheses. The study revealed that the efficiency of female board members was positive and  significantly related with the financial performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria. Also, the female CEO and Board gender diversity were negative  but significantly weak related with the financial performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria. Based on these findings, the study therefore concluded  that the efficiency of female board, female CEOs and board gender diversity were related to the financial performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria.  Meanwhile, there is a negative and significant association between board gender diversity and the financial performance of deposit money  banks in Nigeria. The study therefore recommended that the female managers and other key players shall incorporate board gender policies and  regulations to enhance the financial performance of deposit money banks in Nigeria. Also, deposit money banks in Nigeria should appoint board  members based on their skills, competencies, experiences and level of education attained.