Bank of Montreal
From Freepedia
| Image:Bankofmontreal.png | |
| Type | Public company |
| Founded | Montreal, Quebec November 3, 1817 |
| Location | Montreal, Quebec |
| Key people | David A. Galloway; Tony Comper |
| Industry | Bank |
| Products | Financial services |
| Revenue | Image:Green up.png 9,612 million CAD (2004) |
| Employees | Image:Green up.png 34,000 |
| Website | http://www.bmo.com |
Bank of Montreal TSX: BMO NYSE: BMO is Canada's oldest chartered bank. It operates under the corporate brand BMO Financial Group; the services of the bank itself are now marketed as BMO Bank of Montreal.
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History
Image:First Canadian Place.JPG The Bank of Montreal is Canada's oldest chartered bank and began business in 1817. It has been referred to as BMO or Canada's First Bank.
The Bank opened in Montreal, Quebec on November 3, 1817. For the first few years of its existence, the Bank occupied a small building on Saint Paul Street. John Grey, a retired dry goods merchant, was the first President of the Bank and Robert Griffin worked as the first cashier.
The Bank of Montreal served as Canada's central bank until the creation of the Bank of Canada in 1935. It played a major role in the development of the country, taking part in the financing of the first transcontinental railway in the 1880s. The first Canadian bank to open a branch abroad, the Bank of Montreal is today a major international bank with 1,100 branches across Canada and around the world.
Mergers
Through its history, Bank of Montreal has merged with several other Canadian banks:
- Commercial Bank of Canada (1868)
- Exchange Bank of Yarmouth (1903)
- People's Bank of Halifax (1905)
- People's Bank of New Brunswick (1907)
- Bank of British North America (1918)
- Merchants Bank of Canada (1922)
- Molson Bank (1925)
Operations
BMO Bank of Montreal is one division within BMO Financial Group:
- BMO Bank of Montreal — banking services
- BMO Harris — US operations
- BMO InvestorLine
- BMO Life
- BMO Nesbitt Burns
The bank's stock is listed on both the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol BMO.
Corporate governance
Current members of the board of directors of BMO are: Robert Astley, Stephen Bachand, David Beatty, Robert Chevrier, Anthony Comper, Ronald Farmer, David Galloway, Harold Kvisle, Eva Lee Kwok, Bruce Mitchell, Philip Orsino, Robert Prichard, Jeremy Reitman, Guylaine Saucier, and Nancy Southern.
Headquarters
Even though BMO's Head Office is located on Saint Jacques Street in Montreal, most decision-making is made in their Toronto headquarters in the First Canadian Place. This reflects the preponderant place of the Toronto Stock Exchange in the Canadian economy and, probably although it is not acknowledged, concerns about separatism in Quebec.
Recent mergers and merger attempts
Purchase of Harris Bankcorp (1984)
In 1984 the bank greatly expanded its operations in the United States by purchasing Chicago's Harris Bank.
Proposed merger with RBC (1998)
In 1998 the Bank of Montreal shocked the Canadian financial community by announcing plans to merge with the Royal Bank of Canada. The Canadian government later blocked the proposed merger.
Membership
BMO is a member of the Canadian Bankers Association (CBA) and registered member with the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC), a federal agency insuring deposits at all of Canada's chartered banks. It is also a member of:
- Interac
- MasterCard International
- Cirrus Network for MasterCard card users
External link
| Commercial banks in Canada | Image:Canada flag large.png |
|---|---|
| Alberta Treasury Branches | Bank of Montreal | BDC | CIBC | CTFS | Canadian Western Bank | First Nations | Laurentian Bank | Manulife | National Bank | President's Choice Financial | RBC | Scotiabank | TD Canada Trust | |
Categories: Companies traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange | Companies traded on the New York Stock Exchange | Banks of Canada | S&P/TSX Composite Index
