Originally Posted by
extramileage
Have the ENBD card. Have had it for some years (back when they offered 2pts/$ on everything). To be honest, other than lounge access the rarely use other services.
For the UAE, I've found that it's best to have your CC and Bank Account at the same institution (although now it appears that you can make cheap wire transfers within the UAE). It makes bill pay much easier. Emirates NBD is good for the UAE as a bank (website has improved and ios app is decent) as it is very well plugged into all local services for online payment (telephone, utilities, RTA, etc) and you can generally use you CC to pay these services.
You should factor the signing bonus into your decision, though. That's real value against the annual fees. You can always switch later!
I used to have an account with CITI a few years ago and - apart from the app - they're offering the same services as NBD in terms of online payment. I agree with you it's best to have your CC and bank account at the same institution, hence my doubt between CITI and NBD.
Although I'd prefer MBD now because of their overall service and ATM availability, I can't see a way over the advantages CITI is giving in cooperation with Mastercard (GOLD qatar etc)...