News Releases
TORONTO, Nov. 5, 2020 /CNW/ - Women-owned businesses have been significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. To continue to celebrate and lend support to women entrepreneurs – particularly now – BMO Financial Group has created a women-owned business directory to help Canadians think about how they spend their money and encourage them to buy women-owned products and services. The new directory will feature some of the top 72 semi-finalists from the bank's recently-launched $100,000 grant program in partnership with Deloitte.
"Supporting business owners and empowering women both inside and outside the bank is deeply connected to BMO's Purpose to Boldly Grow the Good – in business and in life," said Ernie Johannson, Group Head, North American Personal and Business Banking, BMO Bank of Montreal. "We recognize the many challenges women-owned businesses face and we are looking for solutions to help. This active directory will spotlight remarkable women across the country and will help Canadians discover local small businesses together, as we work towards a more inclusive economic recovery from the pandemic."
In addition to the business directory, BMO has developed programs and invested in solutions to support women entrepreneurs, including:
- Investing $3 billion in capital over three years to women-owned businesses and programs across Canada to ensure they succeed
- Increasing its authorized lending to women business owners by more than $1.4 billion
- Introducing women client strategy teams across the country, that tie together Business Banking, Private Wealth, and Financial Planning
- Funding more than $35,000,000 to women-owned businesses via BMO Business Xpress since November 2019
- A new e-learning course that informs client-facing employees about the nuances in working with women and shares strategies to help increase these clients' financial success
- Online resource centre for women at bmoforwomen.com that provides critical advice for building a successful business through workshops, webinars, and podcasts
The new women-owned business directory will continue to evolve and grow into 2021. To access the women's business directory please visit bmoforwomen.com/women-owned-businesses/ and join the social conversation using #BMOforWomen.
About BMO Financial Group
Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a highly diversified financial services provider - the 8th largest bank, by assets, in North America. With total assets of $974 billion as of July 31, 2020, and a team of diverse and highly engaged employees, BMO provides a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, BMO Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.
SOURCE BMO Financial Group
