Board Characteristics and Financial Performance

This paper assesses the effects of board characteristics on financial performance of 14 listed banks in Nigeria for five (5) years (2018-2022). Board size, board independence, board gender, and board meetings serve as proxies for board characteristics. Financial performance is proxy by return on assets. Secondary data were extracted from the annual reports and accounts of the listed banks. Correlational research design was employed as the research design. The regression method employed was panel data regression. The findings reveal that board meetings, board gender diversity and board independence show insignificant effects on financial performance. Furthermore, the study shows a positive significant effect of board size on financial performance. The paper recommends that those banks with more than 9 board members should reduce board size in compliance with central bank regulation. In terms of board independence, banks should ensure than majority of directors are independent and non-executive. On board meetings, those banks that hold meetings less than four times in year should do so in compliance. Finally, banks with less than 30% women on board should the number in compliance with central bank regulation. However, the study also recommends that managers should not waste time and money on board meetings, board independence and board gender as they are not determinants of financial performance in banks in Nigeria. The study is limited by the number of samples, specifically 70 banks. It is expected that further research can increase the total sample of banks by adding to the research period or using company samples from other non-banking sectors. Further research is expected to be able to add other board characteristics such as education, experience, compensation, and ownership that may influence the decisions made in a company.