News Releases
BMO Financial Group is celebrating its 190th anniversary November 3. It was on this day in 1817 when nine Montreal businessmen invested $150,000 to found the Bank. Originally known as Montreal Bank, the Bank opened its doors for the first time on St. Paul Street in Montreal.
As Canada's first bank, BMO has been first with many innovations over the years to better serve customers, and the pace is accelerating. In 1817, the Bank's capital was $150,000. Today, the market value of the bank is more than $30 billion.
Since its founding, BMO has played a significant role in projects key to the growth of Canada, including the construction of the first canals, telegraphs and railways, most notably Canadian Pacific's transcontinental line. The Bank was also responsible for the first Canadian currency, which it issued from its founding until the Bank of Canada was created in 1935.
“From funding the fur trade and the first railroad construction, to providing financial services for millions of Canadians and businesses, BMO has remained focused on serving its customers who, in turn, have built this great country,” said Bill Downe, President and Chief Executive Officer, BMO Financial Group.
“To facilitate trade between Canada and the rest of the world, the Bank appointed agents in London, England and New York within a year of its founding. We established a permanent agency in New York's bustling financial district in 1859, the year a railway between Montreal and New York was completed. In 1861, we set our sights on the U.S. Midwest, establishing a permanent agency in Chicago. One of BMO's early competitors was N.W. Harris and Co., which became part of BMO Financial Group a century later,” added Mr. Downe. “Today, as we mark our 190th anniversary, our employees across the globe share a passion for looking at banking through our customers' eyes. We want to give our customers' confidence in their own future by helping them make the right choices.”
Other notable firsts from Canada's first bank include:
1870 – First Canadian bank to open an international branch – London, England
1957 – First bank in Canada to appoint two women assistant managers
1962 – Opened an office in Tokyo - first Canadian bank to open an office in Japan
1967 – Appointed first female director of a Canadian chartered bank
1975 – 1980 – First Canadian financial institution to go “on line”, connecting all of its branches on a real-time basis to a central computer
1980 – A leader in computerized technology, BMO installed the first on-line Automated Banking Machines
1984 – First Canadian bank to acquire a U.S. subsidiary – Harris
1987 – First bank in Canada to break the pillars between brokerages and banks with the acquisition of Nesbitt Thomson, a predecessor for BMO Capital Markets
1988 – First bank in Canada with a series of personal banking plans
1993 – The Bank's pioneering efforts also extend to training - committed $50 million to develop BMO Financial Institute for Learning
1992 – Founding Sponsor of the AIR MILES Reward Miles Program - first major bank in North America to start rewarding its customers for their personal banking
1994 – First Canadian bank listed on New York Stock Exchange
1994 – Became the first non-U.S. company to win the high-profile Catalyst Award, given to companies that show progress in promoting women
1996 – The first Canadian bank to offer full-service banking across North America on the Internet
1996 – First Canadian bank to receive a licence for a full-service branch in Beijing
1997 – First bank in North America to introduce on-line mortgage adjudication
1997 – First Canadian organization to win the Optimas Award for its HR endeavors
2002 – First Canadian bank to participate as a marketmaker in China's foreign exchange market
2003 – BMO received approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission to acquire an interest in Fullgoal Fund Management Company Ltd., positioning BMO as the first foreign company to acquire an interest in an established fund management firm in China.
2004 – First Canadian bank to be granted derivatives licence in China
2005 – One of the first Canadian companies to be listed on the new Dow Jones Sustainability North American Index
2006 – The first Canadian bank to open an Investment Banking Representative office in China
2007 – BMO InvestorLine launched MyLink and became the first on-line brokerage in Canada to offer a service that sends personalized messages directly to individual investors that are customized based on each investors' holdings, helping them to keep on top of their portfolio
2007 – BMO launched the most comprehensive debit card rewards program for customers in Canada. BMO's personal banking customers can collect AIR MILES reward miles whenever and wherever they make purchases using their BMO Bank of Montreal debit card.
As BMO continues to expand and renovate its branch network, the Bank will mark its 190th anniversary with an event today at its main branch in Montreal. “The branch is one of the most notable buildings in the country and holds a special place in both the city's architectural heritage and Canada's history,” said Jacques Menard, President, BMO Financial Group, Quebec. “More than bricks and mortar, this building is an enormous source of pride for all BMO employees across Canada.”
Photo available: BMO Bank of Montreal's Main Branch in Montreal, located at 119 Saint Jacques Street
About BMO Financial Group
Established in 1817 as Bank of Montreal, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified North American financial services organization. With total assets of $359 billion as at July 31, 2007, and more than 35,000 employees, BMO provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and solutions. BMO Financial Group serves clients across Canada through its Canadian retail arm, BMO Bank of Montreal, and through its wealth management firms BMO Nesbitt Burns, BMO InvestorLine and BMO Harris Private Banking. BMO Capital Markets, our North American investment and corporate banking division, provides a full suite of financial products and services to our North American and international clients. BMO also serves personal and commercial clients in the United States through Chicago-based Harris, an integrated financial services organization that provides more than one million personal and business clients with banking, lending, investing, financial planning, trust administration, portfolio management, family office and wealth transfer services.
- 30 -
BMO Financial Group is celebrating its 190th anniversary on November 3. The Bank opened its doors for the first time on
1st photo – dated 1870
2nd photo – dated 1948
