Bank of Montreal has announced plans to deploy up to $70-billion in new capital over the next decade to support industries it considers vital to Canada’s economic security and resilience.
The commitment, unveiled ahead of Ottawa’s Canada Investment Summit on Tuesday, targets sectors that the federal government has identified as central to strengthening the national economy. BMO said the capital will flow into electricity, energy and transportation infrastructure, mining and critical minerals, AI computing, defence and security, and oil and gas.
The money will be delivered through a mix of bank financing, debt capital markets activity, and the raising of public equity, according to the bank.
The announcement comes as major foreign firms prepare to gather at the investment summit to explore opportunities tied to Canada’s major infrastructure and industrial projects. That push forms part of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s broader strategy to lessen the country’s economic reliance on the United States.
BMO chief executive officer Darryl White said in an interview that foreign investors are especially drawn to projects that can move forward quickly and promise strong returns.
“It’s very important that we’ve turned the tone in Canada to a build-first and an open-for-business-first tone, which is very inviting to the rest of the world,” White said. “And you’re seeing it now in the FDI that’s turning our way.”
BMO’s move follows growing pressure over the past year on Canada’s largest banks to expand lending to small and medium-sized businesses, alongside calls for pension funds to increase domestic investment. In June, Canada’s banking regulator told a Senate committee that Canadian lenders should match a commitment made by JPMorgan Chase & Co., the world’s largest bank. JPMorgan pledged last year to invest US$1.5-trillion over 10 years in sectors supporting the resilience of the U.S. economy, and earlier this year said it would extend similar support to Canada, Europe and Britain.
Other major Canadian banks have made their own moves in recent weeks. Royal Bank of Canada said it is launching a $1.4-billion fund to invest in Canadian technology companies, including firms in aerospace and dual-use defence work, focusing on areas it views as national strengths. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce is committing $2-billion over five years to small and medium-sized defence-related and dual-use businesses as Ottawa increases military spending. Bank of Nova Scotia is preparing to issue Canadian defence bonds to help companies raise capital, while National Bank of Canada has brought on retired general Rick Hillier as an adviser to help grow its client base in the defence and security sector.
BMO said its capital commitment is designed to help Canadian businesses stay competitive as the global economy shifts, and could support projects brought to the federal Major Projects Office, as well as initiatives tied to Canada’s national electricity strategy, Alberta’s oil sands, sovereign AI development, and the defence and oil and gas industries.
White said the bank identified its priority sectors by examining previously announced projects and gathering insight into where its clients are looking to invest and spend.
He added that attracting foreign investment will ultimately depend on how quickly Ottawa can move projects from proposal to launch.
“We’re off to a good start, but it’s still too slow,” White said, pointing to the Major Projects Office as one initiative meant to speed up approvals. “I can’t give you a long list of places where we can say that we’ve accelerated from a two to a 10, but I do know there are a lot of initiatives to try to get that dial turning faster. I can’t encourage it enough. It’s the number one issue that gets raised by our client base.”
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