Frequently Asked Questions
Trading Inquiries
How do I place my first trade?
I'm already a BMO InvestorLine client, do I need to register to trade online through your web site?
How do I trade bonds on your site?
Can I get real-time quotes?
What types of orders can I place online? Do you support sell on stop orders?
Can I retrieve quotes or place orders on US Over-The-Counter securities?
What do the numbers beside bid and ask on a quote mean?
What happens if I place an order online but I do not have sufficient margin to cover the trade?
How do I exercise my options?
How do I participate in US after hours trading?
How do I participate in the TSX "Last Sale" trading session?
How can I identify TSX stocks with an unusual voting structure?
Can I settle my trades in another currency besides Canadian dollar?

 

How do I place my first trade?
Payment is required to be made in advance of first trades. For margin accounts, please ensure that the amount required to meet BMO InvestorLine's prescribed margin requirement is in your account before making your first trade.

Here's how you can deposit funds into your BMO InvestorLine account:

For Cash/Margin Investment Accounts:
You can use the AccountLink® service to deposit funds. AccountLink Service consists of your regular securities account at BMO InvestorLine and a BMO Bank of Montreal Canadian Dollar Chequing account and, if requested a US Dollar Chequing Account. AccountLink is a service that we include for all investment (non-registered) accounts at BMO InvestorLine. It is designed to give you quick and easy access to the cash in your investment account and to provide you with a convenient way to settle your trades.

You can contact us by phone and arrange for funds to be transferred from your BMO Bank of Montreal bank account or transfer funds between accounts online through BMO Bank of Montreal Online Banking.

You can also mail us a cheque. Make sure your BMO InvestorLine account number is on the cheque. Please note that your cheque must clear before you can place a trade.

For RRSP Accounts:
You can contact us by phone and arrange for funds to be transferred from your BMO Bank of Montreal bank account or your BMO InvestorLine cash/margin investment account.

You can also mail us a cheque. Make sure your BMO InvestorLine account number is on the cheque. Please note that your cheque must clear before you can place a trade.

Once your funds are in your BMO InvestorLine account, you can place a trade:

  • over the Internet by signing into your account, or
  • by touch-tone phone using Automated Telephone Trading, or
  • by contacting a BMO InvestorLine representative at 1 888 776 6886 during our business hours from 8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. ET, Monday to Friday.

I'm already a BMO InvestorLine client, do I need to register to trade online through your web site?
There is no need to register. Once your BMO InvestorLine account is open, you may access your account information and place orders online provided you have a strong encryption browser. Simply sign into your account at the top right-hand corner of this page. Be sure to follow the instructions for entering your account number and password on the account sign-in screen.

How do I trade bonds and other fixed income products on your web site?
Once you have signed into your BMO InvestorLine account online, entering a fixed income purchase is as simple as an equity order. In addition the primary benefit of our online service is the ability to view our entire inventory of fixed income products.

Can I get real-time quotes?
Free real-time quotes are available only to BMO InvestorLine clients once they are signed into their account online or through our Automated Telephone Trading system. Otherwise quotes are 20 minutes delayed.

What types of orders can I place online? Do you support stop orders?
You can place equity, options and mutual fund orders online. For equity orders, you can place buy, sell, or sell short orders at either market or at limit price. You can also place stop orders on those markets which support this type of order.

Can I retrieve quotes or place orders on US Over-The-Counter securities?
Online quotes and trading is available for Pink Sheets and US Over-The-Counter Bulletin Board (OTC-BB) securities. Due to the speculative nature of these markets, please be aware that a very high degree of risk is involved when investing. For more information, please visit www.otcbb.com and www.pinksheets.com.

What does Bid Lot and Ask Lot on a quote mean?
The numbers denote the board lots available at the bid and ask prices. A board lot is a regular trading unit. The board lot size of a stock can be 1000, 500, or 100 shares depending on the price of the stock and the exchange. Generally, for stocks that trade at $1 or more, a board lot is 100 shares.

What happens if I place an order online but I do not have sufficient margin to cover the trade?
All online orders are screened for sufficient margin, as per securities regulations. When you place an order to purchase securities, sufficient margin must be in your account in advance of the trade.

To ensure that you have sufficient margin to cover the trade before placing the order, simply make a deposit to your BMO InvestorLine account beforehand.

How do I exercise my options?
Please call your local BMO InvestorLine office and give the instructions to a BMO InvestorLine representative. Regular commission applies on exercise of options.

Note: Effective June 2008, both Canadian and U.S. Equity Options automatic exercise threshold price for in-the-money options has changed from $0.05 to $0.01.

How can I identify TSX stocks with an unusual voting structure?
Effective May 2006, the “special voting” stock symbol extension program introduced in 2004 to indicate unique voting structures has been discontinued by TSX Group’s equity exchanges (Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange).

Eg. The symbol for Bombardier, BBD.SV.B, will be changed to BBD.B.

The following voting structure identifiers will no longer be used:

  • NV – non-voting shares
  • MV – multiple-voting shares
  • SV – subordinate-voting shares
  • LV – limited-voting shares
  • RV – restricted-voting shares

Non-convertible note securities will be identified by the note identifier extension – NT.

Please find attached a complete schedule (excel format) outlining the migration. These changes will be made throughout the months of May and June 2006. You may also retrieve the complete list of all securities listed on TSX and TSX Venture affected by this change on www.tsx.com. If you have any questions about this information or the changes, please contact TSX at info@tsx.com.


Note: All Canadian open orders using these "special voting" stock symbol extensions will be cancelled by the exchanges. BMO InvestorLine will be automatically resubmitting your cancelled order with the new trading symbol for your convenience.


Can I settle my trades in another currency besides Canadian dollar?

You can settle trade in U.S. dollar for cash/margin accounts and most registered accounts including:

  • Tax-Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs)
  • Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs)
  • Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRIFs)
  • Life income funds (LIFs)
  • Locked-in Retirement Income Funds (LRIFs)
  • Prescribed Retirement Income Funds (PRIFs)
  • Restricted Life Income Funds (RLIFs)
  • Locked-in Retirement Accounts (LIRAs)
  • Restricted Locked-in Savings Plans (RLSPs)

For Registered Education Savings plan, you can only settle trades in Canadian dollar.