Starting Out

Security of Your Assets
BMO Nesbitt Burns, the Canadian investment industry and its governing bodies are committed to ensuring the safety and security of your assets. BMO Nesbitt Burns operates in strict adherence to the regulations, policies and bylaws dictated by the governing bodies of the securities industry in Canada, including the Investment Dealers Association of Canada.

When you open an account at BMO Nesbitt Burns, your assets are protected in many ways, including:

Canadian Investor Protection Fund (CIPF)
Customers' accounts are protected by the Canadian Investor Protection Fund within specified limits & policies.

Asset Segregation
BMO Nesbitt Burns holds your securities on your behalf, but keeps them separate from the firm's own holdings. This means that in the highly unlikely event that the firm became insolvent, your assets would be protected.

Street Name
When you buy securities through an investment firm, you don't receive the actual stock certificates. Your securities are held in street name, which means that they are held (on paper, not in certificate form) on your behalf by your investment firm.

Keeping your securities in street name is by far the safest way to guard your investments. Securities kept at home are in danger of theft, misplacement or damage due to water or fire.

When you buy a security, you are no longer issued a certificate. Instead, electronic transfers move your securities from one account to the other. This is achieved with the assistance of the Canadian clearing corporations, which electronically settle all transactions of stocks and bonds at the end of each trading day — without physically moving any certificates. Also (as noted above) securities kept in street name at BMO Nesbitt Burns are segregated, further protecting your Investment.

For more information, contact an Investment Advisor at a BMO Nesbitt Burns branch near you.

If you would like a BMO Nesbitt Burns Investment Advisor to contact you, simply complete this brief contact form.

Note: These comments are not intended to be a definitive analysis of tax law: The comments contained herein are general in nature and professional advice regarding an individual's particular tax position should be attained in respect of any person's specific circumstances.