News Releases

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 3, 2012) - With Finance Minister Jim Flaherty joining tomorrow's commemorative ceremony marking the end of the production of the Canadian penny, BMO reminds Canadians to cash in their copper coins before circulation of the penny officially ends in Fall 2012.

BMO Coin Counters, rolled out last year, are available for free to all BMO customers and non-customers, and are an ideal solution for Canadians looking to get rid of their loose change.

"Canadians put into practice a number of techniques to save money, including collecting and storing their loose change - a significant portion of which is likely made up of pennies," said Paul Dilda, Head of North American Branch Channel, BMO Bank of Montreal. "BMO's free coin counters are a convenient way for Canadians to cash in on their pennies."

BMO Coin Counters are able to count Canadian coins at a rate of up to 4,000 per minute. The counters generate a receipt for the total, which can be exchanged at the branch for cash or deposited into a BMO bank account.

One year after BMO rolled out its free coin counting machines in new and select remodelled branches, Canadians have deposited more than 54 million coins, totalling more than $7 million in loose change.

Furthermore, the free service has resulted in upwards of $880,000 in savings for Canadians, as transaction fees for similar services can run above 9 per cent of the total amount of money deposited.

Total Amount and Weight of Coins Counted via BMO Coin Counters:

To date, BMO has rolled out 57 coin counting machines in branches located in Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

For more information, please visit www.bmo.com. To find a BMO coin counter near you, please visit https://locator.bmo.com.

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 $538 billion as at January 31, 2012, and more than 47,000 employees, BMO Financial Group provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and solutions.