The likelihood and financial effect of merger and acquisitions on Nordic listed firms: the role of women on the board

Abstract: This thesis seeks to explore whether female board members on Nordic listed firms have an impact on the likelihood of performing an M&A transaction. Additionally, it investigates women's impact on financial performance. The foundation for our research questions and hypotheses development lies in the Critical Mass theory and the differences and similarities in decision-making between gender. We run two probit regressions and one OLS regression on a data set between 2014 and 2020. First, we examine the probability that a firm will make an M&A transaction. Secondly, the probability of the transaction being Nordic. Finally, we test what effect gender distribution on the board has on the firm's financial performance three years post-transaction. Our results show that one additional woman on the board of directors as well as a critical mass of women does not have a significant effect on any of our tests.