Boardroom Gender Diversity on Stock Liquidity: Empirical Evidence from Chinese A-share Market

Abstract

ABSTRACT The corporate governance effect of boardroom gender diversity has attracted more and more attention in theory and practice, but less attention is paid to whether boardroom gender diversity affects stock liquidity, which is the core indicator of capital market efficiency. Taking listed companies in Chinese A-share market during 2002 and 2017 as sample, this study focuses on the influence of boardroom gender diversity on stock liquidity. We find that (1)the boardroom gender diversity increases stock liquidity significantly; (2) the effect of boardroom gender diversity on stock liquidity is more significant in firms with more female director ownership than in firms with less female director ownership; and (3) the findings above are more significant in low investor sentiment period. This research enriches the researches on the drivers of stock liquidity and on the consequences of boardroom gender diversity. The conclusions of this article are also useful for the design of boardroom gender structure, and for improving the effect and efficiency of investor education.