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BMO Financial Group continues to be recognized for its leadership in corporate governance, most recently ranked number one among the top 25 Boards in Canada, according to a survey by Canadian Business Magazine.

BMO scored 99 out of a possible 100 points in the survey, which assessed companies on the basis of accountability, board independence, disclosure, three-year total return and three-year return vs. the TSX.

Canadian Business Magazine noted that BMO was one of the first companies in Canada to implement a comprehensive board evaluation system that evaluated the contributions of each director as well as the effectiveness of the board as whole.

BMO Chairman David Galloway stated, “Sound governance and ethical behaviour begins with our Board of Directors. It is our responsibility to ensure that each member of senior management is held accountable – to shareholders, customers, employees, and to the communities in which we do business – for his or her actions.”

Tony Comper, President and Chief Executive Officer, said, “BMO’s senior management team recognizes that the interests of shareholders and our business are advanced by a commitment to sound principles of corporate governance. This acknowledgement reinforces our commitment to maintaining and building upon our reputation as a leader in corporate governance practices.”

Since 1817, BMO Financial Group has believed in community reinvestment and corporate and social responsibility to the communities it serves. BMO Financial Group contributed more than CDN$29 million in corporate donations, sponsorships and events in 2004, supporting thousands of communities, charities and not-for-profit organizations in Canada. BMO has also recently been recognized with the following:

• Corporate Knights awarded BMO its 2005 award for Best Corporate Citizen of the Year.
• Brendan Wood has ranked BMO Nesbitt Burns as the Top Equity Research Group for the 25th consecutive year.
• In 2004, the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants presented BMO with an Award of Excellence in the Financial Services category for Corporate Reporting.
• The Globe and Mail’s Report on Business ranked BMO second overall and first among the country’s banks in its 2004 annual review of corporate governance practices.
• The Globe and Mail ranked BMO seventh on their list of Canada’s most respected corporations in 2004.
• Also in 2004, Maclean’s Magazine and Mediacorp Inc. recognized BMO as one of Canada’s top 100 employers. BMO was the only major Canadian bank to have been included on this list for the past three years.

NOTE TO PHOTO EDITORS: A photo of Tony Comper and David Galloway accompanies this release and is available on the CNW Photo Network and archived at http://photos.newswire.ca and at bmo.com. Additional archived images are also available on the CNW Photo Archive website at http://photos.newswire.ca. Images are free to accredited members of the media.

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SOURCE: Reuters

Board Award:  Bank president and CEO Tony Comper (left) and chairman David Galloway are both members of BMO's board of directors, which shares top honours as the best board in Canada in this year's survey by Canadian Business.