News Releases

BMO Bank of Montreal, the only Big Six bank to offer seniors one free Interac ABM withdrawal at another financial institution's automated banking machine (ABM) in a free banking plan, today announced that it is extending the fee waiver of its Performance Plan for seniors and its Plus Plan for students.

This announcement guarantees that seniors and students will continue to enjoy free banking through these highly competitive plans for the next three years.

“Seniors and students have told us that they value these banking plans,” said Lynne Kilpatrick, Senior Vice-President, Personal Banking. “Seniors, in our free banking plan, like being able to use an ABM at another financial institution every once in awhile when they can't get to one of our almost 2000 ABMs across Canada. Students like the flexibility of a free banking plan with a relatively high monthly transaction limit (currently 30). Students also like the fact that BMO is the only bank to offer one free e-mail money transfer per month; the only bank to offer the flexibility to have up to 20 accounts per plan; and the only bank to apply its fee waiver to recent graduates, regardless of age. Our guaranteed fee waiver provides seniors and students with greater certainty as they plan their financial affairs.”

Recently, BMO completed a major upgrade of its network of ABMs, installing almost 2000 new, state-of-the-art ABMs throughout its network of 963 branches and off-site locations across Canada.

“This was a major undertaking,” said Kilpatrick. “We have completely replaced every Instabank machine in the BMO retail bank network with the most advanced machines on the market, and we have been strategic about locating them in locations that provide convenient access for our customers. For example, we have over 200 ABMs within one kilometre of university campuses across Canada.”

Kilpatrick said the new generation of ABMs have been loaded with improved customer service features that will make banking from an ABM faster, simpler and more accessible. The new ABMs also allow for additional future banking functions such as cheque imaging and the ability to use Chip Card technology when it rolls out across Canada over the next few years.

The new BMO Instabank machines provide many services and features not included on the previous generation of ABMs, including:

• Improved accessibility by lowering the machine height and, where possible, "front accessibility" for wheelchair users.
• Improved customer ease of use with redesigned screens and improved transaction flows. For example,
  • The new BMO ABMs save customers time by enabling them to add up to five deposit “items” using one screen and to deposit all the items using a single envelope;
  • Customers can also save processing time using the new “fast cash” withdrawal option, bypassing certain screens and procedures; and
  • Customers can view up to three bills that were paid during each session on the ABM screen.
• Improved security, such as
  • providing a flexible key pad shield on every ABM and new recessed screens that limit side viewing, helping to prevent customer data from being observed by others, and
  • new built-in security enhancements which can better detect fraud and help limit criminal activities such as card “skimming”.

Established in 1817 as Bank of Montreal, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified North American financial services organization, with total assets of $356 billion as at January 31, 2007, and more than 35,000 employees.

- 30 -