As accounting scandals involving publicly traded corporations continue to emerge, skepticism about financial reporting grows globally. Despite audit committees on company boards, these scandals still impact company performance, raising concerns about the efficacy of audit committees. This research examines how characteristics of audit committees (ACs), such as gender diversity, membership tenure, share ownership, and leadership roles, influence the performance of publicly traded non-financial firms in Nigeria. Analyzing data from 73 companies on the Nigerian Exchange Group over 2015-2021, yielding 511 firm-year observations, the study employs advanced panel data methodologies like fixed effects and twostep GMM models. Results indicate that gender diversity within ACs and leadership positions significantly boost corporate performance, while longer tenure and share ownership by AC members are linked to poorer performance. Company size, growth, and leverage also critically influence performance. This study enriches the discourse on corporate governance and AC efficiency within the Nigerian market, offering evidence-based insights for enhancing firm performance through strategic AC compositions. The findings suggest increasing female representation on ACs and managing AC member tenure and share ownership to bolster corporate success and stakeholder trust, underscoring the need for strengthened governance and oversight mechanisms.

Keywords: Audit Committee Characteristics, Corporate Performance, Nigerian Listed Companies, Two-Step Difference GMM, Two-Step System GMM JEL: H2, L6, M4