Impact of Corporate Governance Mechanisms on the Financial Performance of Listed Insurance Firms in Nigeria (*)

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of Corporate Governance Mechanisms onthe financial performance of listed insurance firms in Nigeria. The Paper investigateswhether CEO status, board size and board composition have impact on the financialperformance as measured by Return on Asset (ROA) and Return on Equity (ROE).The data used in this study where obtained from annual reports and accounts ofselected insurance companies and other statistical documents/records maintained bythe Nigeria stock Exchange. Regression analysis was used to estimate the relationshipbetween financial performance measures and the corporate governance mechanisms.The study discovered that there is a positive significant relationship between BoardComposition and the two firms performance measures (ROE & ROA). The studyalso shows that the relationship between Board size and ROA was significantlynegative, while no relationship exists between board size and return on equity (ROE). The result of the relationship between CEO status and ROA was negative while norelationship exists between CEO status and ROE. The study recommends that thecode onboard composition of listed insurance companies should be sustained andencouraged so that corporate governance could be strengthened to allow room forenhanced financial performance of the listed insurance companies in Nigeria.

Keywords

• CEO status, Board Size, Board Composition, Financial Performance, Corporate Governance, Insurance Companies.