Abu Dhabi, Apr 27 (IANS/WAM): The National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) has been named the best bank in the UAE by Global Finance, a prestigious financial magazine.

In the magazine's "Best Emerging Markets Banks 2013" ranking, NBAD was selected as the best bank in the UAE based on input from industry analysts, corporate executives and banking consultants.

The criteria to choose the winners in the 12 Middle East countries included growth in assets, profitability, strategic relationship, customer service, competitive pricing and innovative products.

According to Global Finance, NBAD is the most effective financial institution in meeting customers' demands and needs and coping with challenges in its market.

In 2012, NBAD's total annual assets increased 17.6 percent to over 300 billion dirhams, and it earned 4.332 billion dirhams, an increase of 16.8 percent from 2011.

NBAD was also ranked one of the "World's 50 Safest Banks" by Global Finance, a distinction it has kept since 2009.