Corporate Board and Capital Structure Dynamics in Nigerian Listed Firms
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The issue of financing structure has been a growing concern among the policymakers,
investors and other stakeholders of the firm. However, the link between corporate board structure
and capital structure has attracted less attention especially in emerging countries. Thus, this
current study examines the impact of corporate board characteristics on the capital structure of
companies listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange from 2015 - 2019. The study used the fixed effects
regression method to analyses the panel data from 93 randomly selected quoted firms in Nigeria.
The result of the empirical analysis shows evidence that board composition and CEO duality have
a positive connection with the capital structure of quoted firms in Nigeria. The findings from the
study clearly indicate that while board size exerts a negative but insignificant influence on capital
structure, board skill and board gender diversity have a positive connection with capital structure.
As expected, the study reveals that profitable listed firms in Nigeria use less debt, while large firms
use more debt to finance assets and this is in tandem with capital structure theories. This study
also confirms the applicability of agency theory in Nigerian quoted firms. Thus, it is imperative
for policymakers and other stakeholders of the firm to ensure an effective board structure and
optimal capital structure for improved value of the firm.
Keywords
HG Finance