Citi, the international financial conglomerate, has won several awards in the first round of Global Finance magazine's awards for the 2011 Best Internet Banks in the Middle East and Africa.

Citi's branches in Egypt, Kuwait, Lebanon, Jordan, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Pakistan won Best Corporate/Institutional Internet Bank Awards in their respective markets, while Citibank Bahrain and Citibank Egypt won best Consumer Internet Bank Awards.

Winners were chosen among entries evaluated by a world-class panel of judges at Infosys. Global Finance editors were responsible for the final selection of winners in the first round.

"Winning banks were selected based on the following criteria: strength of strategy for attracting and servicing online customers, success in getting clients to use web offerings, growth of online customers, breadth of product offerings, evidence of tangible benefits gained from Internet initiatives, and website design and functionality," according to Global Finance.

"We are delighted to receive these awards from Global Finance. This is a strong recognition of Citi's capabilities and the service we provide to our clients in the region," Middle East Division chief executive officer Atiq ur Rehman said. – TradeArabia News Service