News Releases

TORONTO, ONTARIO and CHICAGO, ILLINOIS and DAVOS, SWITZERLAND--(Marketwired - Jan. 22, 2015) - For the second year in a row, BMO Financial Group has been named to the Global 100 - a ranking of the most sustainable corporations in the world. BMO is one of only two financial institutions from North America on the list. The announcement was made during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

The Global 100 - an annual project initiated by Corporate Knights Inc. - is the world's most extensive data-driven corporate sustainability assessment. Inclusion is limited to a select group of the top 100 large-cap companies in the world.

"To achieve a place alongside this select group of international companies is a great honour for all of us at BMO," said Bill Downe, Chief Executive Officer, BMO Financial Group. "This recognition underlines the emphasis we place on relevant environmental, social and governance disclosure. These considerations are, and will continue to be, integral to our business. Our customers expect no less - and it's what we expect of ourselves."

BMO and Sustainability

BMO has earned a position on several key sustainability indices, including: the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, the Jantzi Social Index and the FTSE4Good Series Index. BMO is also included on the Maclean's/Jantzi-Sustainalytics list of the Top 50 Socially Responsible Corporations in Canada and Corporate Knights Magazine's Best 50 Corporate Citizens.

BMO's Environmental, Social and Governance Report and Public Accountability Statement (ESG Report/PAS) outlines the sustainability issues most important to our internal and external stakeholders, and to the bank. Our ESG Scorecard, on page 5, is complete with credible year-over-year performance metrics. The ESG Report/PAS is a comprehensive source of BMO sustainability performance. The ESG Report/PAS is available at: www.bmo.com/esg-pas-report. The new edition for 2014 will be available in March.

Highlights:

• BMO Capital Markets was involved in raising approximately $2.8 billion of equity and debt in the capital markets for entities active in renewable energy across North America
• BMO Harris Bank made US$701.6 million in community development loans to support economic development, community service and quality affordable housing in the U.S.
• BMO contributed more than $57 million in donations to non-profit organizations across North America
• BMO has maintained its carbon neutral status since 2010. It has two emissions-related reduction targets, both established in 2013. Year-over-year performance can be seen at http://www.bmo.com/home/about/banking/corporate-responsibility/environment/environmental-performance

BMO's Corporate Responsibility Report, a companion piece to the ESG Report/PAS, illustrates the way we conduct our business, what we stand for, and the commitments we've made to our customers and the communities where we operate. The report is available on our website at: www.bmo.com/corporateresponsibility.

About BMO Financial Group

Established in 1817 as Bank of Montreal, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified financial services organization based in North America. The bank offers a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers. BMO Financial Group had total assets of $589 billion and more than 46,000 employees at October 31, 2014.

To view the methodology used to determine the 2015 Global 100, visit: http://global100.org/methodology/