Abstract. The objective of this study is to examine the effect of the adoption of IFRS on the market
performance of banks in Nigeria. Secondary data were acquired from the financial statement of 15
money deposit banks listed on floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) while regression and
paired sample test analyses were used to determine the association between the adoption of IFRS
and the market performance of listed money deposit Banks in Nigeria. The study found a positive
and significant relationship between the adoption of IFRS and the market performance of listed
money deposit banks in Nigeria proxy by Dividend pay-out (DPO) and Dividend Yield (DY).
Furthermore, the paired sample test result indicates a significant difference exists between Dividend
pay-out (DPO) and the adoption of IFRS while no significant difference exists between Dividend
Yield (DY) and the adoption of IFRS. Thus, the study recommends that the global adoption of
International Financial Reporting Standards particularly in developing economies like Nigeria
should be properly implemented and studied, so as to keep abreast with the various changes the
would likely affect the market performance of the Nigerian Banking industry