Cost of equity, debt financing policy, and the role of female directors

We examine the role of female directors on firm cost of equity in the context of US-listed firms, and further explore the mediating impact of debt financing policy on such association. Using a dataset of 4619 non-financial firm-year observations covering the period of 2008–2019, we find that firms with female directors on boards are likely to exhibit a lower cost of equity, through relying on a less risky financing decision. The indirect effect is found to take up around 45% of the female-cost of equity association. In addition, our analysis also indicates that the lower debt financing levels are realised only if female representation reaches a critical mass of around 28%. Our findings provide important implications for firms in balancing the gender ratio within their boards to level out their risk-taking through their financing decisions.