Liquidity Management and Financial Stability of Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the effect of liquidity management on the financial stability of deposit money banks in Nigeria. The motivation for the study is anchored on the increasing need for banks to maintain adequate liquidity buffers while sustaining profitable and stable operations in a changing financial environment. Liquidity management was measured with current ratio, cash ratio and debt-to-assets ratio, while financial stability was proxied by return on assets. The study adopted an ex-post facto research design and relied on secondary data obtained from the audited annual reports of selected deposit money banks listed on the Nigerian Exchange Group for the period 2013 to 2022. Descriptive statistics and linear regression analysis were used to analyse the data. The findings revealed that current ratio has a statistically significant effect on financial stability. Cash ratio also showed a statistically significant effect on financial stability, indicating that adequate cash liquidity strengthens the capacity of banks to meet obligations and sustain performance. However, debt-to-assets ratio showed a positive but statistically insignificant effect on financial stability. The study concludes that liquidity management is a critical determinant of bank financial stability in Nigeria, although the effect of leverage-related liquidity pressure depends on the quality of assets and the structure of bank liabilities. The study recommends that deposit money banks should maintain a balanced liquidity position, strengthen cash management systems, improve asset quality review, and align liquidity decisions with broader risk management and resilience strategies.