Pragmatic visions
It all started with nine enterprising merchants who understood the importance of banking to business.
Learn more
iNOVA Award
BMO has received the 2017 iNOVA award for our BMO History website. The iNOVA awards recognize excellence and innovation in corporate websites.
1818: First agency in the U.S.
The young Montreal Bank established its first agency in the United States in 1818. In 1859, the population of New York had swelled to 800,000. That year, a rail link between Montreal and New York was completed, and the bank established a permanent office in Manhattan’s bustling financial district. This was 41 years after the bank had established an agency there, and marked the first permanent office of any Canadian bank in the U.S.
The one-room office was located at 23 William Street. It was so cramped, the bank soon moved a few blocks to 32 Pine Street, a stone’s throw from Wall and Nassau, the crossroads of American finance.
Through the decades
Take a look back at Bank of Montreal, Harris and M&I employees in their natural habitats through the years.
The definitive history of one of North America's most enduring banks, Whom Fortune Favours: The Bank of Montreal and the Rise of North American Finance, Volume 1 & 2, by Laurence B. Mussio.
Visit the McGill Queen’s University Press site to order your copy.
A visually rich tribute to Canada’s first bank, A Vision Greater than Themselves: The Making of the Bank of Montreal, 1817-2017 by Laurence B. Mussio tells the compelling story of the bank from its origins to present day.
Visit the McGill Queen’s University Press site to order your copy.