INFLUENCE OF SUSTAINABILITY FACTORS ON THE FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF LISTED FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA: A CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITY PRACTICE EXAMINATION

This study investigates how sustainability disclosure affects the financial performance of publicly traded financial companies in Nigeria. The major objective of this study is, to assess the impact of disclosure indices related to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors on financial measures, such as return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE), return on assets (EVA), and Tobin’s Q, and to determine the extent to which sustainable finance practices are integrated into firms’ operational strategies. The study employed the expost facto research design method, focusing on a population of 49 financial institutions registered in the Nigerian Exchange Group Limited database as of 2024. A purposive selection method was used to create a sample size of 36, and data were gathered from annual reports, company websites, and the NGX database, adhering to ESG sustainability disclosure criteria. Analysis involved descriptive and inferential statistics, including OLS regression, fixed effect, and random-effects model. Results indicated a significant influence of sustainability disclosure on key financial performance indicators (ROA, EVA, ROE, and Tobin’s Q) for the companies examined. The study recommends the adoption of mandatory sustainability reporting requirements for all listed financial institutions in Nigeria to, improve financial performance and overall stakeholder well-being in terms of environmental, social, and governance considerations