News Releases

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Aug. 16, 2012) - As part of BMO Financial Group's ongoing commitment to financial literacy and 'Making Money Make Sense' for Canadians, BMO is releasing a financial tip every week in 2012.

BMO's Financial Tip of the Week: Maximize Your Everyday Spending by Earning More Rewards on Debit Card Purchases

In the current economic environment, Canadian households are looking for value more than ever. One way to maximize the return on day-to-day spending is to take advantage of rewards programs. According to a recent BMO survey, more than 70 per cent of Canadians belong to at least one loyalty rewards plan.

As a long-time partner with the AIR MILES Reward Program, BMO recently launched the BMO AIR MILES® bank plan - a new chequing account that allows customers to earn AIR MILES reward miles using their debit card so they bolster their spending power. The new plan allows customers to earn one AIR MILES reward mile for every $30 spent on their debit card. When customers use their debit card to pay for purchases at AIR MILES Sponsors, they accelerate their rewards earnings by earning rewards twice on the same purchase - once from BMO and once from the Sponsor.

"Canadians have been spending more cautiously in light of the economic climate, and are looking for ways to squeeze more out of every dollar they spend," said David Heatherly, Vice President, BMO Bank of Montreal. "With the introduction of the BMO AIR MILES bank plan, customers can now significantly enhance the value they are getting from this payment method by accelerating the rate of earning reward miles and ultimately spending smarter."

The new plan provides additional opportunities to earn even more rewards:

• Up to 600 bonus AIR MILES reward miles per year by maintaining a monthly balance of $3,000
• 300 bonus AIR MILES reward miles per year when they also carry a BMO Gold AIR MILES credit card.

The BMO AIR MILES calculator helps customers see how their everyday spending, whether they use their BMO debit card or BMO credit card, can add up to hundreds of ways to reward themselves, including paying down debt faster.

To learn more about how to better manage your spending and achieve your savings goals, stop by a BMO branch or visit bmo.com/smartsteps.

BMO SmartSteps is part of BMO's ongoing commitment to 'Making Money Make Sense'. Since 2009, BMO has introduced various tools to help Canadians effectively manage their personal finances, including BMO by Appointment, BMO MoneyLogic, BMO SmartSteps for Parents, BMO SmartSteps for Business and BMO SmartSteps for Homeowners.

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 $525 billion as at April 30, 2012, and more than 46,000 employees, BMO Financial Group provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and solutions.