For the quarter ended April 30, 2024, BMO Financial Group reported net income of $320 million for its wealth management business. 

For the same period in 2023, net income was $240 million. This represents a 33% year-over-year increase.

In more detail, for the second quarter of fiscal 2024, net income for traditional Wealth and Asset management activities was $252 million. This is an increase of 19% or $41 million over the same period in 2023.

The company attributes this result to “higher revenue due to growth in client assets, including stronger global markets, partially offset by lower deposit balances and net interest margins.” 

Insurance net income amounted to $68 million in the second quarter of 2024, up $5 million or 8% over the same quarter of 2023.

The financial institution explains the difference essentially by changes made to portfolio positioning during the transition to IFRS 17.

Assets  

Assets under management stood at $385.9 billion at April 30, 2024, an increase of $47.8 billion or 14% compared with April 30, 2023.

Assets under administration totaled $725.9 billion at the end of the second quarter of 2024, down $65.6 billion or 9% on the same period in 2023. The difference is explained, as in the first quarter of 2024, by the bank's exit from institutional trust services.

Revenues  

After deducting claims, commissions and changes in policyholder benefit liabilities (CCPB), BMO Wealth Management's net revenues were $1.4 billion in the second quarter of 2024. This is an increase of $100 million or 8% compared with the same period in 2023.

Revenues generated by BMO’s Wealth and Asset Management subsidiary reached $1.3 billion in the second quarter of 2024, an increase of $48 million, or 4%, compared to the second quarter of last year.

Insurance revenue totalled $102 million in the second quarter of 2024, an increase of $52 million over the same period in 2023.

Report to Shareholders  

Like other Canadian banking institutions with U.S. operations, BMO made an additional $50 million contribution to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) during the quarter. A further assessment of $313 million was made in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

Provision for credit losses totaled $705 million in the second quarter, of which $517 million related to the performing loan portfolio acquired from Bank of the West. The acquisition of this U.S. bank, announced last year at a cost of US$16.3 billion, was closed in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

Of this $705 million, impaired loans accounted for $658 million in the second quarter, compared with $243 million a year earlier. The higher interest rate environment, which is weighing on consumer and business finances, explains this difference, according to the company.

BMO's share price had declined by 9.3% in the six trading days following the release of quarterly results on May 28.