BOARD ATTRIBUTES AND FINANCIAL LEVERAGE OF LISTED COMMERCIAL BANKS IN NIGERIA
Keywords:
Age Diversity, Board Attributes, Debt-To-Equity Ratio, Financial Leverage, Gender DiversityAbstract
This study ascertained the effect of board attributes on financial leverage of listed deposit money banks in Nigeria for the period of eleven (11) years spanning from 2012 to 2022. Gender diversity and age diversity were used to proxy board attributes while debt-to-equity ratio was used to measure financial leverage. In line with the objectives of the study, two hypotheses were formulated. Ex-Post facto research design was employed. Thirteen (13) listed deposit banks constituted the sample size of this study. Secondary data were extracted from the annual reports and accounts of the sampled firms and were analysed using E-Views 10.0 statistical software. The study employed both descriptive and inferential statistical. The inferential statistics was applied using Pearson correlation and Panel Least Square (PLS) regression analysis. Findings from the empirical analysis showed that gender diversity has a significant and positive effect on debt to equity ratio (β1 = 10.55505; P-value = 0.0000); Age Diversity has a significant and positive effect on debt to equity ratio (β1 = 0.073849; P-value = 0.0136). Conclusively, gender-diverse and age-diverse boards are better equipped to assess and manage financial risks, leading to more strategic and balanced decisions regarding capital structure and leverage. The study recommended that since gender-diverse boards influences the financial leverage of firms through better monitoring which is likely to increase confidence and encourage ownership by uninformed investors, hence, there is need for more female directors on the Board.