BMO Sets its Sights on Half-Million Students: Creates Unique SPC Mosaik MasterCard
Bank says early relationships key to future brand loyalty

TORONTO, August 1, 2007 – BMO Bank of Montreal has partnered with Student Price Card (SPC), a Canadian national youth shopping loyalty program, to launch a new student Mosaik MasterCard as a way of capturing the lifetime loyalty of today’s youth.

The new BMO SPC Mosaik MasterCard combines all the benefits of the BMO Mosaik MasterCard credit card plus SPC exclusive discounts and savings on clothes, food, entertainment, travel and other services at more than 250 merchants in 10,000 locations across Canada.

Since its launch in 1992, Student Price Card has developed a following of more than 500,000 members between the ages of 14 and 24, 70 per cent of whom are university students, and 74 per cent of whom use their SPC three or more times each month. By linking SPC with the widely popular Mosaik MasterCard, BMO hopes to increase its reach to Canada’s youth market.

BMO SPC Mosaik MasterCard is a unique product developed with the 18 to 24 year old youth-student segment in mind. Through this strategic partnership with SPC, BMO will gain access to an attractive student customer base, one that can help drive new customer growth effectively.

Nancy Marescotti, Director, Card & Retail Payment Services, BMO Bank of Montreal, said BMO’s strategy is to build brand and bank loyalty in early life stages to ensure the bank is top of mind for students when they enter the working world and start families. “If we can prove ourselves with the kind of customer services we can offer, we will win students over as they become adults, start families, get mortgages and setup RRSPs and RESPs,” she said.

“We understand that being a student can often mean living on a strict budget,” said Ms. Marescotti. “To help students stretch their dollar with savings and to address the needs of the youth market, we’ve created a unique new credit card that saves them money, provides them with credit and gives them added rewards with AIR MILES reward miles or CashBack features.

“It’s like getting two great cards in one. You get all the great benefits of Mosaik MasterCard; you can use it for everyday purchases anywhere MasterCard is accepted; and you also get exclusive discounts at thousands of SPC Card retailers nationwide for no added fee,” said Ms. Marescotti. “BMO SPC Mosaik MasterCard is budget stretching, money saving and credit building and, frankly, it may be the first and only card a student needs.”

Key features and benefits of BMO SPC Mosaik MasterCard include:

• SPC annual fee of $8.50 is waived and there is no need to renew the conventional SPC card every year
• SPC savings at thousands of retail locations across Canada
• Flexibility, allowing students to continually customize their card as their needs change with features such as:
  • No-fee AIR MILES or CashBack rewards
  • No-fee or Low-rate interest rate plan
  • Travel and Medical Protection

"We are excited about the launch of the new card”, said Dean Mazzariol, President of Student Price Card (SPC). Unlike any other student credit card on the market, it provides youth with a complete set of relevant lifestyle rewards. The option to combine SPC Card instant discounts with either AIR MILES or CashBack is an unparalleled value proposition,” said Mr. Mazzariol.

To promote the launch of the new BMO SPC Mosaik MasterCard, BMO will enter, into a draw, each cardholder who uses the new card between Aug. 1 and Nov. 30 for a chance to win a $7,000 shopping spree at Bluenotes, Aldo and Athlete's World. For contest details, visit bmo.com/mosaik or visit any BMO Bank of Montreal branch.

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Contact:

Ralph Marranca, Toronto, ralph.marranca@bmo.com, (416) 867-3996
Ronald Monet, Montreal, ronald.monet@bmo.com, (514) 877-1101
Laurie Grant, Vancouver, laurie.grant@bmo.com, (604) 665-7596