Two men reading

On holiday with BMO: Currency exchange guide

Image of the cover of BMO's Currency Guide. It reads "Currency Guide for travellers to the British Isles and Continental Europe. Bank of Montreal, Canada's First Bank." It features a simple line drawing of a man and woman next to a luggage tag that reads "Bon Voyage." The man is holding the currency guide.
Cover of BMO’s Currency Guide for the British Isles and Continental Europe, 1961

As we welcome the summer season, thoughts turn to time off and holidays away. BMO has long helped Canadians prepare themselves for travelling abroad. In the age of globalisation, keeping track of different currencies when travelling can be especially difficult. This was even more difficult in the 1950s, when there was no Internet to look up facts. During this time, to help our customers manage their money during their travels, BMO printed currency exchange pamphlets. These pamphlets were designed to demonstrate the exchange rate of American currency into various currencies.

This image shows a currency converter wheel. The opening is set to show the conversion of New French Francs to U.S. Dollar.
Currency exchange wheel that shows the conversion from United States Dollar to New French Franc, 1961.

Printed in 1961, this guide was one of a series produced to show currency conversions for different regions around the world. It was intended for customers travelling to Europe. As it predates the European Union, the guide illustrates the variety of European currencies that circulated prior to the introduction of the Euro in 1999. Currencies include the Italian lira, the French franc, and the (West) German mark. The guide features a moveable wheel for the customer to use in order to view the conversion of common denominations. With their currency converter in hand, customers who travelled abroad were easily able to determine how much they were spending.

While these types of pamphlets are not needed in the same way today as they were in 1961, BMO still works hard to ensure that customers are able to travel with ease. Where to next?