Mergers and Acquisitions and the Financial Performance of Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria
A Panel Regression Analysis (2020–2024)
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Abstract
This research evaluates the role played by operational cost, quality of assets and liquidity in determining the financial performance of the chosen deposit money banks in Nigeria after a merger and acquisition (M&A) exercise. The secondary data were collected using ex post facto research approach based on audited annual financial statements of ten purposely chosen banks that include the years 2020 to 2024. The estimation of the relationship between the independent variables and the return on assets (ROA) was done using panel least squares regression. The result shows that the operational cost has a statistically significant negative impact on ROA (β=-0.064, p= 0.01), which implies that post-merger cost inefficiencies reduce profitability. On the other hand, asset quality (β = 0.066, p > 0.05) and liquidity (β= 0.016, p > 0.05) have positive effects on ROA which are not statistically significant indicating limited short- term impact on profitability. It is estimated that the model accounts to 56 percent of the variation in bank performance (R2 = 0.557), and the general regression is statistically significant. The researchers reach a conclusion that the most vital factor determining the post-merging profitability of Nigerian banks is operational efficiency. It suggests tight cost control, enhanced control on credit risks and improved liquidity deployment as a way of improving sustainable performance. The research paper will add to the literature on the banking sector in Nigeria, as it will be presenting recent panel-based findings on the drivers of the post-M&A performance in the 2020-2024 period.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Mr Iheanyichukwu E. Emmanuel , Chrisogonus Chukwunyere Nwaiwu, Goodluck Oghenejomafuvwe Essi, Loveth Oribhabor Agboola, Adekemi Olayide Oyewale, Kennedy Ofori Sarkwah (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Mr Iheanyichukwu E. Emmanuel , Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Management Science, Federal University Otuoke Bayelsa, Nigeria.
Department of Business Administration, faculty of Management Science
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