The Citadele Bank has become one of five companies in Latvia to receive the title of national championship in the 2012/2013 business awards. The competition involved more than 600 companies from 28 countries. Everyone who was interested in the process could visit the European Business Awards homepage to vote for his or her favourite company, and the result was the determination of 100 national champions in various countries.
35,000 people cast votes, and the companies which received the most votes in each country were automatically declared to be national champions. The other national champions were selected by an international jury. Among the national champions in Latvia other than Citadele were Latvenergo, SEB Latvia, Rīgas Karte, and Hotel Bergs.
The next round in the European Business Awards will take place in the spring of 2013, when representatives of the national companies will present their enterprises on site. The jury will evaluate companies in various categories so as to decide which ones will receive the European Business Awards.
Citadele board chairman Guntis Beļavskis: “We became a national champion thanks to our voters and to the jury, and that once again confirms the successful development of the bank. In the next round, we’ll be presenting our business areas, also talking about the bank’s innovative products, some of which are unique at the Baltic level and have allowed Citadele to have a fundamental role in the financial market. We would like to thank clients and employees who voted for us in the competition in which companies presented their videos, and we will make sure that our clients continue to receive the offers which are most appropriate for their needs and are most important in the marketplace.”
Each year the European Business Awards select the best companies from 30 different European countries – those which do best in demonstrating good business results, innovations and business ethics. In the net round, an international jury will evaluate the national finalists on the basis of ethical criteria, good relations with interested parties, and the ability of the company to plan its operations in the long term, flexibly adapting its results to dynamic market circumstances. The European Business Awards have been presented since 2007 to emphasise good achievements and innovative and ethical approaches to business operations.
About Citadele Bank
Citadele is a local Latvian bank which offers banking, financial and asset management services. Citadele group is represented in the Latvian market as well as in 10 other countries. Citadele Bank is the only collaboration partner of American Express in Latvia and Lithuania who is entitled to issue American Express credit cards. In 2012 the bank was recognized as the best governed state-owned enterprise in the Baltic States according to a study conducted by the Baltic Institute of Corporate Governance. Citadele’s vision is to become the most valuable local financial group in the Baltic States. 75% minus one Citadele Bank’s shares are possessed by the State Joint Stock Company Privatization agency on behalf of the Latvian State and the owner of 25 % plus one share is the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).