A Shooting Star in the Neighbourhood

Almost 20 years ago I was embroiled in the Nigeria 419 internet scam.  The details are beyond this email - suffice it to say that as the result of my bank - the CIBC on Somerled's mistake in cashing a bogus $35,000 cheque - I had my accounts cancelled and was blackballed by the entire Montreal banking community for a very long time.  It also ended a friendship (just friendship) between Antoinette Guerierrero - the head teller and myself - which has never recovered.

For almost 10 years I did not have a bank account of my own.

At a certain point I tried to get an online account with Tangerine - and was successful.  I have a no fee, unlimited transaction (e-transfers, debit card use...) chequing account which I love.  It is accessible to everyone.  The drawback is that Tangerine does not have physical locations, but you can withdraw funds from over 3,500 ScotiaBank ATMs for free nationwide.

In 2020 I moved from our home on Hingston Ave to a beautiful condo in The Condors  across the street from Cote St. Luc Shopping Centre.  I got myself an account at the BMO directly across the street from my condo - primarily for the purpose of getting cash from the ATM - which gives denominations of $5, $10, $20 and $50.  Because I had just turned 60 - I was able to get a free, limited transaction no fee chequing account.

In recent weeks I have been assisting a friend to get her finances in order.  She was bleeding money from all orifices.  She is/was a client of CIBC Somerled (everything happens for a reason!) - paying almost $20/mth for a chequing account for which she never issued cheques.  We got her a no fee unlimited transaction chequing account through Tangerine to start.

We then registered her online for a no fee limited transaction chequing account with BMO Cote St Luc.  Because the signup process could not be completed online - we were made an appointment with the branch the following day.  We started working with a representative but got to a point where he was not sure where to go.  In came Jacob Connolly - a young, dynamic man with a great smile and attitude.  In minutes he squared everything away and we were on our way - content that we had everything we needed from BMO.

When we got home we tried to setup online banking for the BMO account and had numerous problems/challenges.  Without calling Jacob, we showed up at the branch and he immediately ushered us into his office - where he spent nearly 45 minutes taking care of all our banking needs.  In the process we spoke about numerous different topics.  He was a competitive swimmer and water polo player.  He does the very long commute from his home in Ile Perrot 5 days/week.  In this time I was introduced to one of the most intelligent and capable 27 year olds I have ever met - and I have met a great many people!  He is a world-changer!  If it is his will - he will be branch manager or even President of BMO.  I hope that is not his will.  I hope he aims much higher - to change the entire banking industry - making it much more customer-centric and much less focused on bottom line returns.

But for now, Jacob is working as a Personal Banking Associate at BMO - 6951 Cote St. Luc Road.  If you need anything within the banking spectrum, I urge you to reach out to him.  He can be reached at 514.877.9580 and/or jacob.connolly@bmo.com.  I promise he will do good by you!

Wishing you peace, love and joy always,





RossG3.ca


















 

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