EFFECT OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY ON THE GROWTH OF FIRST BANK NIGERIA PLC

Abstract

This paper investigates the effect of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on firm growth. It uses a descriptive research survey design with a quantitative approach to analyze the First Bank of Nigeria Plc commitment to corporate social responsibility. The study used secondary data obtained from the annual financial reports of the First Bank between 2008 and 2018. The independent variable, investment in CSR in areas like education, welfare, and entrepreneurship, was regressed against the dependent variable, that is, firm growth using Ordinary Least Square (OLS). The study discovered that there is a positive relationship between corporate social responsibility and the growth of first bank profitability. Furthermore, it was recommended that for firms to optimally reap such expenditure on CSR, a generic allocation of projects should be jettison for location-specific needs where firms consult the benefiting communities in which they operate rather than generalizing their CSR activities.