BMO Capital Markets Named the 2009 Best Bank for the Canadian Dollar by FX Week Magazine

BMO’s Foreign Exchange Group consistently recognized for its leading FX capabilities

TORONTO, BMO Capital Markets, the investment and corporate banking arm of BMO Financial Group (TSX, NYSE: BMO), has been named the Best Bank for the Canadian Dollar by FX Week Magazine.

This is the first time BMO Capital Markets has received this honour, which is determined by votes from foreign exchange market professionals around the world. The FX Week Best Bank Awards are presented annually in London, U.K. during November.

“As the benchmark for the performance in the global FX industry, the FX Week Best Bank Awards are the most accurate indicator of who is leading the forex marketplace,” said Stephen Couling, Publisher, FX Week. “And there is no question BMO Capital Markets has earned the No. 1 ranking in the Canadian dollar as judged by some of the largest and most influential FX participants.”

In this year’s survey, nearly 7,000 respondents from banks, corporate treasurers and investors, including fund managers, institutional investors and hedge funds, nominated their preferred banks, brokers and vendors in 39 categories. Each institution was awarded three points for a first-place nomination, two for second-place and one for third-place. In the Canadian dollar category, BMO Capital Markets was ranked first by banks and investors and second by corporations – which resulted in a first-place finish overall.

This recognition is one of several awards that BMO Capital Markets has recently won for its overall excellence in foreign exchange. In September, BMO Capital Markets was named the best foreign exchange bank in Canada by European CEO Magazine. Earlier this year, BMO Capital Markets was voted best FX market-maker in a survey by the China Foreign Exchange Trade System (CFETS) and the Interbank Funding Centre. Global Finance Magazine also named BMO Capital Markets the Best Investment Bank in Canada in a 2008 survey.

“We are honoured to be recognized by FX Week as the No. 1 dealer for the Canadian dollar globally,” said Jamie Thorsen, Global Head of Foreign Exchange Products, BMO Capital Markets. “Our goal is to continue to build long-term sustainable client relationships and provide a unique perspective that offers a differentiated depth of expertise in the Canadian dollar. We are all about helping our clients turn currency risk into reward.”

BMO Capital Markets’ Foreign Exchange Group is a team of nearly 100 professionals around the world from Beijing to Chicago. BMO has FX offices in eight cities globally, including a foreign exchange sales and trading desk in London, U.K., which opened in 2007.

The FX group holds a dominant position in the Canadian-dollar foreign exchange market and is top-ranked by large hedge funds and pension funds for institutional liquidity and pricing capacity. BMO’s Foreign Exchange Group trades in all major and other exotic currencies – close to 50 tradable currencies and exotics and over 100 currency pairs. The group offers clients a wide range of capabilities, including:

* Canadian-dollar market making
* North American hedging
* Chinese transactions
* 24 hour trading
* Structured risk-management solutions including derivatives, swaps and options, and real-time order monitoring and quotes through its leading web-based platforms DirectLine® and eFXpedite
For more information, visit: www.bmocm.com/products/marketrisk/fx/

About BMO Capital Markets
BMO Capital Markets is a leading full-service North American financial services provider, with over 2,200 employees operating in 14 North American offices and 27 worldwide, offering corporate, institutional and government clients access to a complete range of investment and corporate banking products and services. BMO Capital Markets is a member of BMO Financial Group (TSX, NYSE: BMO), one of the largest diversified financial services providers in North America with
US$385 billion total assets and 37,000 employees as at July 31, 2009.

About FX Week Magazine
Published since 1990, FX Week is the industry’s exclusive publication for foreign exchange and money market professionals working within banks, brokerages, institutions and corporate treasuries. FX Week’s expert editorial team operates out of London, the heart of the foreign exchange market, with support from editorial offices in New York and Hong Kong, ensuring that subscribers are provided with the information on the powerful forces that are making the markets tick and the events that are shaping the FX industry world-wide. For more information, visit, http://www.fxweek.com