Institution profile · Big Six bank (Schedule I)
BMO Bank of Montreal
ActiveBank of MontrealCDIC
Bank of Montreal is Canada’s oldest bank and a Big Six Schedule I bank. It expanded in the United States by acquiring Bank of the West in 2023.
Profile facts checked October 30, 2026
At a glance
- Legal name
- Bank of Montreal
- Type
- Big Six bank (Schedule I)
- Head office
- Head office Montreal, QC; executive offices Toronto, ON
- Founded
- 1817 — Started business in Montreal in 1817; chartered under the Bank Act since 1871.
- Regulator
- Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) for safety and soundness; Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) for consumer protection
- Cheapest everyday account
- Primary Chequing Account with Performance Plan — $215 a year for the Everyday example
- Best posted savings rate
- 0.45% on $10,000 (Savings Amplifier Account)
- OBSI banking cases
- 617 opened in fiscal 2025 (Nov 1, 2024 – Oct 31, 2025)
- Website
- www.bmo.com
Deposit protection
CDIC member. BMO Trust Company and Bank of Montreal Mortgage Corporation are separate CDIC members.
Names CDIC lists for these members: BMO Bank of Montreal, BMO Commercial Bank, BMO Financial Group, Advisor's Advantage Trust, BMO Trust and Estate Services.
Our assessment: 39.4/100, #12 of 13 in our bank review
Strongest on app rating. Trails on savings rate and everyday cost. Cheapest account for everyday use: $215 a year.
Cost 32 · Savings rate 16 · App rating 79 · not scored: access, service. How the review works.
BMO Bank of Montreal chequing accounts and what they cost
BMO Bank of Montreal lists 5 chequing accounts with FCAC. For our “Everyday” example (25 debit purchases, 6 bills, 5 e-Transfers and a $1,000 low balance a month), the cheapest account open to anyone is Primary Chequing Account with Performance Plan at $215 a year. Accounts limited to a group are marked.
| Account | Monthly fee and waiver | Included | Fees a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary Chequing Account with Performance Plan | $17.95/mo, or $0 with a $4,000 minimum balance | Unlimited | $215 |
| Primary Chequing Account with Blue Rewards Plan | $17.95/mo, no balance waiver | Unlimited | $239 |
| Primary Chequing Account with Premium Plan | $30.95/mo, or $0 with a $6,000 minimum balance | Unlimited | $371 |
| Primary Chequing Account with Plus Plan | $12.95/mo, or $0 with a $3,000 minimum balance | 25 a month | $418 |
| Primary Chequing Account with Practical Plan | $4.00/mo, no balance waiver | 12 a month | $483 |
BMO Bank of Montreal savings accounts and posted rates
| Account | Rate at $10,000 | Monthly fee |
|---|---|---|
| Savings Amplifier Account | 0.45% | No monthly fee |
| Savings Builder Account | 0.05% | No monthly fee |
| Premium Rate Savings | 0.01% | No monthly fee |
On the official lists
| Legal entity | OSFI list | CDIC member |
|---|---|---|
| Bank of Montreal | OSFI — Schedule I domestic bank | Yes |
| BMO Trust Company | OSFI — trust company | Yes |
| Bank of Montreal Mortgage Corporation | OSFI — loan company | Yes |
Facts, with sources
- Head office at 129 rue Saint Jacques, Montreal; executive offices at 1 First Canadian Place, Toronto.Source: bmo.com
- Completed the acquisition of Bank of the West from BNP Paribas on February 1, 2023.Source: bmo.com
- Named in Schedule I of the Bank Act and chartered under it since 1871.Source: bmo.com
Your own pattern can change the order. Put your numbers into the true-cost finder to rank BMO Bank of Montreal’s accounts against everyone else’s.
Complaints that reached the ombudsman
OBSI, the ombudsman for banking, opened 617 banking cases about Bank of Montreal in fiscal 2025 (Nov 1, 2024 – Oct 31, 2025), closed 556, and resolved 115 to the complainant’s satisfaction. Across all banks and credit unions, OBSI opened 5,438 banking cases that year (+113% on the year before) and 25% of closed cases ended with money paid.
Counts aren’t adjusted for size, so bigger banks have more cases. A complaint reaches OBSI only after the bank’s own process (up to 56 days). Source: OBSI Annual Report 2025, released March 13, 2026. How to complain.
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