BOARD CHARACTERISTICS AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF LISTED INSURANCE FIRMS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

The effectiveness and efficiency of the board of directors as a monitoring tool for the management of an organization is essential to the performance of the firms. Given that board efficiency is subject to its structure, it, therefore, becomes imperative for studies to empirically ascertain board independence board size gender diversity and financial performance of listed insurance firms in Nigeria. The population comprises all the 45 quoted insurance firms in Nigeria while the filtering technique was used to arrive at a sample size of twenty-three (23) listed insurance firms in Nigeria. The hypotheses were tested using a robust random effect regression model after conducting some diagnostics tests. The results of the first model show that board independence, board size and gender diversity, have a significant positive relationship with the return on equity of listed insurance firms in Nigeria. The study recommends among others, that management should ensure that the composition of boards includes a sufficient number of independent directors who can provide unbiased oversight of management decisions and corporate strategy and also implement robust governance structures and practices that promote transparency, accountability, and ethical behavior within the organization and management should Aim for a balanced board size that allows for diverse expertise and viewpoints without compromising decision-making efficiency, and also tailor board size to fit the specific needs and complexities of the insurance industry in Nigeria, ensuring that it facilitates effective governance and strategic oversight.