There have been concerns regarding possible
earnings manipulation within the Nigerian corporate
sector. Such actions have cast doubts on the accuracy of
finances and even resulted in the collapse of certain
businesses. This study examines the moderating effect of
board independence on the relationship between board
gender diversity and earnings management of listed
Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria. The study used a panel
data regression technique for data analysis. Data was
obtained from the audited annual reports and accounts of
the banks over the period 2012-2022. Robustness tests
such as normality test of standard error, multicollinearity
and heteroscedasticity tests were carried out to validate
the results. The findings revealed that board gender
diversity has a significant negative effect on the earnings
management of banks before moderation, while after
moderation with board independence, it was found to
have a positive and significant effect on the earnings
management of banks. Therefore, board gender diversity
is associated with less earnings management, while the
multiplicative effect of board independence on board
gender diversity does not guarantee a reduction in
earnings management. The findings have important
policy implications for the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
which is striving to improve transparency in the banking
sector. It also has policy implication which enables deposit
money banks to create an inclusive and equitable
environment that goes beyond mere numbers and
statistics and reap the benefit of having a re-structured,
re-composed, re-organized and diversified board along
the findings of the study.
Keywords : Board Gender Diversity, Board Independence, Earnings Management, Upper Echelon Theory.