Bank of Montreal 2004 Annual Report Download - page 86

BMO Financial Group Annual Report 200482
Statement of Management’s Responsibility
for Financial Information
Shareholders’ Auditors’ Report
Bank of Montreal’s management is responsible for presentation
and preparation of the annual consolidated financial statements,
Management’s Discussion and Analysis (“MD&A”) and all other
information in the Annual Report.
The consolidated financial statements have been prepared in
accordance with Canadian generally accepted accounting principles
(“GAAP”) and the requirements of the Securities and Exchange
Commission (“SEC”) in the United States, as applicable. The finan-
cial statements also comply with the provisions of the Bank Act
and related regulations, including interpretations of GAAP by our
regulator, the Superintendent of Financial Institutions Canada.
The MD&A has been prepared in accordance with the require-
ments of securities regulators, including National Instrument 51-102
of the Canadian Securities Administrators as well as Item 303 of
Regulation S-K of the Securities Exchange Act, and their related
published requirements.
The consolidated financial statements and information in the
MD&A necessarily include amounts based on informed judgments
and estimates of the expected effects of current events and trans-
actions with appropriate consideration to materiality. In addition,
in preparing the financial information we must interpret the
requirements described above, make determinations as to the
relevancy of information to be included, and make estimates and
assumptions that affect reported information. The MD&A also
includes information regarding the impact of current transactions
and events, sources of liquidity and capital resources, operating
trends, risks and uncertainties. Actual results in the future may
differ materially from our present assessment of this information
because future events and circumstances may not occur as expected.
The financial information presented elsewhere in the Annual
Report is consistent with that in the consolidated financial
statements.
In meeting our responsibility for the reliability of financial
information, we maintain and rely on a comprehensive system
of internal control and internal audit, including organizational and
procedural controls and internal controls over financial reporting.
Our system of internal control includes written communication of
our policies and procedures governing corporate conduct and risk
management; comprehensive business planning; effective segre-
gation of duties; delegation of authority and personal accountability;
careful selection and training of personnel; and sound and conser-
vative accounting policies which we regularly update. This structure
ensures appropriate internal control over transactions, assets and
records. We also regularly audit internal controls. These controls
and audits are designed to provide us with reasonable assurance
that the financial records are reliable for preparing financial state-
ments and other financial information, assets are safeguarded
against unauthorized use or disposition, liabilities are recognized,
and we are in compliance with all regulatory requirements.
We, as Bank of Montreal’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief
Financial Officer, will certify Bank of Montreal’s annual disclosure
document filed with the SEC (Form 40-F) as required by the
United States Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
In order to provide their opinion on our consolidated financial
statements, the Shareholders’ Auditors review our system of
internal control and conduct their work to the extent that they
consider appropriate.
The Board of Directors, based on recommendations from
its Audit and Conduct Review Committees and its Risk Review
Committee, reviews and approves the financial information
contained in the Annual Report, including the MD&A, and oversees
management’s responsibilities for the presentation and preparation
of financial information, maintenance of appropriate internal
controls, management and control of major risk areas and assess-
ment of significant and related party transactions.
The Shareholders’ Auditors and the Bank’s Chief Auditor have
full and free access to the Board of Directors and its committees to
discuss audit, financial reporting and related matters.
To the Shareholders of Bank of Montreal
We have audited the consolidated balance sheet of Bank of
Montreal as at October 31, 2004 and the consolidated statements of
income, changes in shareholders’ equity and cash flows for the year
then ended. These financial statements are the responsibility of
the Bank’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion
on these financial statements based on our audit.
We conducted our audit in accordance with Canadian generally
accepted auditing standards. Those standards require that we
plan and perform an audit to obtain reasonable assurance whether
the financial statements are free of material misstatement.
An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting
the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit
also includes assessing the accounting principles used and signifi-
cant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the
overall financial statement presentation.
In our opinion, these consolidated financial statements present
fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Bank of
Montreal as at October 31, 2004 and the results of its operations and
its cash flows for the year then ended in accordance with Canadian
generally accepted accounting principles.
The consolidated balance sheet as at October 31, 2003 and
the consolidated statements of income, changes in shareholders’
equity and cash flows for each of the years in the two-year period
ended October 31, 2003, prepared in accordance with Canadian
generally accepted accounting principles, were audited by
KPMG LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, who expressed
an opinion without reservation on those statements in the
shareholders’ auditors’ report dated November 25, 2003.
KPMG LLP
Chartered Accountants
Canada
November 23, 2004
Canada
November 23, 2004
Karen E. Maidment
Senior Executive Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer
F. Anthony Comper
President and Chief Executive Officer