Cross-Listing Governance Effects and Firm Performance: Evidence from Nigerian Firms Listed on Multiple Stock Exchanges

This dissertation investigates the governance effects of cross-listing and their impact on firm performance among Nigerian companies listed on multiple domestic and international stock exchanges. Cross-listing, particularly on international exchanges such as the London Stock Exchange, New York Stock Exchange, or Johannesburg Stock Exchange, is theorised to impose higher governance standards on listed firms through stricter regulatory requirements, greater analyst scrutiny, and exposure to more sophisticated institutional investors. For Nigerian firms, cross-listing decisions carry governance implications that may be particularly significant given the governance gap between domestic and international exchange requirements. Drawing on the bonding hypothesis, the signalling theory, and the governance improvement literature, this study examines governance changes in fifteen Nigerian firms that cross-listed internationally between 2000 and 2022, comparing their governance quality trajectories with a matched sample of purely domestically listed firms using propensity score matching. Governance quality is assessed using a multi-dimensional governance index constructed for both pre- and post-cross-listing periods. Performance is measured using accounting and market metrics. Difference-in-differences analysis with staggered treatment timing estimates the causal governance effect of cross-listing. The study makes original contributions by providing the first systematic causal governance analysis for Nigerian cross-listed firms, developing a cross-listing governance assessment methodology, and testing the bonding hypothesis in a distinctly Nigerian institutional context. Findings will guide Nigerian firms considering cross-listing and regulators managing dual governance requirements. Keywords: cross-listing, governance effects, bonding hypothesis, firm performance, Nigerian listed firms.