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BMO Study: Half of Canadians Feel Their Investments Don't Align to Support Key Life Events

- Sixty per cent of Canadian investors have target dates in mind to reach their financial goals

- However, only half feel their investments are aligned to support their key life events such as marriage, the purchase of a home and retirement

- BMO LifeStage Class Mutual Funds and Corporate Bond Target Maturity Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) help address this by reducing the risk as a key life event approaches

With Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) upon us, BMO Financial Group today announced the results of a study which indicates that while most Canadian investors have target dates for key life events such as marriage, buying a house, having children and retirement, fewer than half feel that their investments are structured to be able to support these milestones.

The study, conducted by Leger Marketing, found:

--  Just under two-thirds (60 per cent) of Canadian investors have time
    frames or target dates in mind to reach their financial goals. 
--  Eighty-nine per cent agree that it is important to hold investments that
    evolve over time to become less risky as key life-event dates approach. 
--  Despite this, only 49 per cent feel that their investments become less
    risky over time.

"One of the basic rules of investing is that your investments should progressively become more conservative as your investment horizon shortens," said Serge Pepin, Head of Investments, BMO Investments Inc. "This is especially critical during times of market volatility. However, as simple as this concept may seem, many of us don't get around to ensuring that our investments are properly balanced, whether it's because of lack of time, knowledge or convenience."

Mr. Pepin continued, "To help Canadians ensure that their investments align to their key life events, we have introduced products such as BMO LifeStage Class Mutual Funds and BMO Corporate Bond Target Maturity ETFs. Both take the guesswork out of ensuring that investments get more conservative as target life-event dates approach."

BMO LifeStage Class Mutual Funds

BMO LifeStage Class Mutual Funds are intended to provide growth in the early stages and to become progressively more conservative over time as they near their respective target end dates. Investors may choose from six portfolios with different end dates that match their individual financial goals. The target end dates range from 2017 to 2040.

BMO Corporate Bond Target Maturity ETFs

Target maturity bond ETFs combine the advantage of maturity dates (as with traditional bonds) with the added benefit of portfolio diversification. The average time to maturity of the ETF's underlying portfolio will decrease to match the approaching maturity date. Like a regular bond that matures on a specific date, the target maturity bond ETF will convert into a short-term bond fund. This gives investors the flexibility to access funds when needed while reducing the risk profile of the portfolio over time. Investors can choose from four BMO target maturity ETFs with target dates ranging from 2013 to 2025.

The survey was completed on-line from January 23rd and 25th, 2012 using Leger Marketing's online panel, LegerWeb, with a sample of 1523 Canadians. A probability sample of the same size would yield a margin of error of +/- 2.51%, 19 times out of 20.

BMO ETFs are managed and administered by BMO Asset Management Inc., an investment fund manager and portfolio manager and separate legal entity from Bank of Montreal. Commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with investments in exchange traded funds. Please read the prospectus before investing. The funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

BMO Mutual Funds are offered by BMO Investments Inc., a financial services firm and separate legal entity from Bank of Montreal. Commissions, trading commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with mutual fund investments. Please read the prospectus before investing. Mutual funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

For more information about:

BMO LifeStage Class Mutual Funds: please visit www.bmo.com/lifestage

BMO Corporate Bond Target Maturity ETFs: please visit www.bmo.com/etfs

About BMO Financial Group

Established in 1817 as Bank of Montreal, BMO Financial Group is a highly-diversified North American financial services organization. With total assets of $477 billion as at October 31, 2011, and more than 47,000 employees, BMO Financial Group provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and solutions.

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