FEMALE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER CHARACTERISTICS AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF LISTED DEPOSIT MONEY BANKS IN NIGERIA

This study examined the effect of female Chief Executive Officer (CEO) characteristics on financial performance of listed deposit money banks (DMBs) in Nigeria for the period 2007–2022. Specifically, the study seeks to investigate if female CEO characteristics (proxy by female CEO financial expertise, female CEO nationality, female CEO industry knowledge and female CEO shareholding) have any impact on the performance of listed DMBs in Nigeria. The study adopted census sampling of the adjusted population of 13 DMBs. Secondary panel data were collected from the annual reports and accounts of the banks and analyzed using panel corrected standard error regression technique. The results showed that female CEO financial expertise, female CEO industry knowledge and female CEO shareholding have positive significant effect on financial performance of the DMBs. The results also revealed that female CEO nationality has positive but insignificant effect on financial performance. Based on the findings, the study concluded that overall, female CEO characteristics have significant impact on financial performance of listed DMBs in Nigeria. It is recommended among others that the listed DMBs should prioritize engaging independent female directors as CEO taking into consideration the level of their financial expertise, industry knowledge and experience and their share of ownership as both have significant impact on financial performance.