The Bank of Montreal headquarters in Toronto.Fernando Morales/The Globe and Mail
On his first day in office as Bank of Montreal's chief executive officer, Darryl White promoted a key lieutenant, giving retail banking head Cam Fowler new authority over some U.S. operations.
Mr. Fowler has been group head of Canadian personal and commercial banking since 2014 and is part of a younger generation of bankers taking over the top ranks at BMO.
He will now be president of North American personal and business banking, and chair of BMO's operating committee. "There is incredible potential within the combined North American market," Mr. Fowler said in news release.
Through its BMO Harris Bank subsidiary, the bank's U.S. arm accounts for about a quarter of BMO's total profit, but Mr. White said in an interview on Sunday that he wants to speed the pace of growth. He predicted U.S. operations will chip in closer to a third of overall profit within five years.
In a statement on Wednesday, Mr. White said Mr. Fowler's new role "will allow us to accelerate our ability to deploy solutions across a larger base at a lower cost on both sides of the border."
Alexandra Dousmanis-Curtis, group head of U.S. retail and business banking for BMO Harris, will report to Mr. Fowler. David Casper, the CEO of BMO Harris who also heads commercial banking, will report directly to Mr. White.