Corporate Governance and Capital Structure of Listed Manufacturing Firms in Nigeria

Abstract

The study examines the impact of corporate governance on capital structure of the quoted manufacturing firms in Nigeria. This study used secondary data methodology to obtained annual report and sample of 28 out of 68 listed manufacturing firms on the Nigeria stock exchange over a period of ten years 2013-2022. The findings revealed significant and positive relationship between corporate governance and financial leverage of listed manufacturing firms in Nigeria. Specifically, the board size coefficient is positive and statistically significant at the 0.01 level and shows a significant positive relationship between board size and financial leverage. The results further indicate a significantly positive relationship between CEO duality and leverage. The coefficient of dual in the model is positive (coef=0.402) and is significant (t=2.640) at the 0.01 level. However, board composition revealed a negative but significant relationship with financial leverage of the listed manufacturing firms in Nigeria. It is recommended that management of manufacturing companies in Nigeria should always display creativity that will ensure good corporate governance so as to significantly drive down the gearing level of their companies.