Board Gender Diversity and Profitability of Listed Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria, Moderated by Firm Age

This study examined the moderating effect of firm age on the relationship between board gender diversity and profitability of listed deposit money banks in Nigeria. The study adopted an ex-post facto research design and relied on secondary data sourced from the audited annual reports of the sampled banks. The population of the study comprised 15 listed deposit money banks as of December 31, 2024, from which 14 were selected using a filtering technique. The study collected panel data covering 10 years and employed descriptive statistics, and panel-corrected regression analysis technique to analyze the data. Findings revealed that female directors significantly and positively affected profitability, while female CEOs had a negative but significant effect on profitability. Firm age, though not independently significant, positively moderated the relationship between female CEOs and profitability, while negatively moderating the relationship between female directors and profitability that is, the profitability benefit of having a female CEO grew stronger in older banks, whereas the profitability benefit of having more female directors weakened in older banks. The study concluded that gender diversity within boards improves profitability, but the direction and strength of that effect depends on firm age. The study recommends that banks increase female representation on boards and develop leadership support structures that periodically review governance cultures to sustain inclusivity and profitability.