| BMO
Helps U.S. Bound Travelers Take Advantage of the Strong Loonie
TORONTO,
November 16, 2007 – With the loonie hovering around record
highs, Canadians are looking for ways to get the biggest bang for their
buck when traveling to the U.S.
“The appeal
of U.S.-dollar-denominated bank accounts, credit cards, term investments
and travel-related medical insurance is rising,” according
to Sid Chopra, Director, Everyday Banking, BMO Bank of Montreal. “We’ve
seen increasing interest in products and services designed to help
our customers manage their everyday banking and financial needs in
U.S. currency
from both sides of the border.”
Canadian cross-border shopping has crept up during the past few years
as the loonie has soared and according to BMO Economists the trend
is about to spike.
BMO offers its U.S bound customers the following tips and advice:
- Apply for a BMO
U.S. Mosaik MasterCard – All transactions are billed
and paid in U.S. dollars, helping cardholders to bypass the cost and
uncertainty associated with exchange rates;
-
Access your accounts free of surcharge or network fees at any
one of more than 500 Harris Branded ABMs;
-
Use your debit card to access any one of more than 1.9 million Maestro
Point of Sale terminals in the U.S.;
-
Open a U.S. Dollar Chequing Account and use the account to pay your
U.S. Mosaik MasterCard;
-
Consider a U.S. Dollar Term Investment, with rates that range from 3.70%
to 4.10% for deposits from $1,000 to $500,000 respectively;
-
Now might be the time to buy U.S. Dollar Mutual Funds, including a monthly
income fund that distributes $0.06 (U.S. $) per unit/per month;
-
If you’re a small business customer BMO offers Lending facilities
that allow you to access funds in both U.S. and Canadian currencies;
-
If you’re one of thousands of Canadians who head to the US over
the winter consider the services offered by BMO Harris Private Bank including
client assistance with cross border tax planning, coordination of tax
return preparation, coordination of travel medical insurance and bill
payment services;
-
Use both your US Mosaik MasterCard and debit card and earn valuable AIR
MILES reward miles. Collect AIR MILES from BMO on an ongoing basis and
earn enough to fund your US vacation next year.
For more information on what BMO has to offer please visit your
nearest BMO branch or www.bmo.com.
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For Media Relations
Enquiries:
Katelyn Hunter,
Toronto, katelyn.hunter@bmo.com, 416-867-3996
Paul Gammal, Toronto, paul.gammal@bmo.com,
416-867-6543
Ronald Monet, Montreal, ronald.monet@bmo.com,
(514) 877-1873
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