TORONTO, ONTARIO and CHICAGO, ILLINOIS and BEIJING, CHINA--(Marketwire - Oct. 10, 2012) - BMO Global Asset Management today announced the appointment of Amit Prakash as Head of Wealth Management Products for Asia.

Based in Hong Kong, Mr. Prakash will be responsible for leading and managing BMO's wealth and investment product teams in Beijing and Hong Kong. He will cover the investment product development and marketing needs of all BMO entities and businesses - as well as BMO's strategic partners - in Asia. Mr. Prakash will fully leverage BMO's global asset management capabilities, cash and deposit products in Asia, as well as other BMO products, in order to provide complete wealth management needs to BMO clients.

"Amit's extensive experience as an investment strategist, portfolio manager and product development director, combined with his leadership skills and substantial knowledge of the Asian wealth management market, make him the ideal person to lead our growth in Asia," said Barry McInerney, co-CEO, BMO Global Asset Management.

"In joining BMO, Amit becomes part of an organization that has been building relationships in Asia since 1818 and is focused on the long term - especially on organic and sustained growth," stated Rajiv Silgardo, co-CEO, BMO Global Asset Management. "We're pleased to welcome Amit to the BMO team."

Before joining BMO Global Asset Management, Mr. Prakash worked with two of the largest asset management firms globally. Most recently, in Singapore he led the product development team in Asia for its Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) business. Prior to that he was based in San Francisco, Toronto and London for nearly 15 years, where he held progressively senior positions as a currency trader and portfolio manager, global macro hedge fund manager and leader of a team of hedge fund managers.

Mr. Prakash holds an MBA from Tulane University and a Master of Economics from University of Delhi.

Albert Yu, CEO Asia, BMO Financial Group, commented on future plans for BMO in Asia, "Our next phase of growth will focus on areas that represent our core competencies and in geographies that our clients consider important. With the significant growth of investment options and the growing sophistication of our institutional and private clients in Asia, it's essential that we fully leverage our global capabilities to deliver tailored investment solutions. We are fortunate to have Amit to help manage this growth."

BMO: Defining Great Customer Experience - Connecting Asia and North America

Asia today has become the address for high net-worth individuals and institutional investors with global aspirations. Pitched at the cross-road of Asia and North America, BMO Asia is well positioned to bridge local clients venturing abroad and international clients conducting businesses in Asia. Built upon our premier Canadian standard of stability and quality, as well as our ability to serve clients' cross-border needs, BMO Financial Group is determined to make our clients at home in investing and doing business in Asia and North America.

For more information, please visit [ http://www.bmo.com/globalassetmanagement ].

About BMO Global Asset Management

BMO Global Asset Management is the brand name for various affiliated entities of BMO Financial Group, that provide trust, custody, securities lending, investment management, and retirement plan services. BMO Global Asset Management comprises BMO Asset Management U.S., BMO Asset Management (Canada)®, and BMO's specialized investment boutiques: Monegy, Inc.®, Pyrford International Ltd, Lloyd George Management, and Taplin, Canida & Habacht, LLC. BMO Global Asset Management is part of the BMO Financial Group, a service mark of Bank of Montreal (BMO). M&I Investment Management Corp. merged into BMO Asset Management Corp. (formerly Harris Investment Management Inc.) on June 1, 2012.

Publication Contributing Sources

• Market Wire