Jonathan Chevreau January 10, 2011 – 10:32 am
BMO Bank of Montreal today launched MoneyLogic, an online personal finance management tools it says is “the first from a major bank that enables customers to set and track savings goals.”
You can view a 4-minute demo of the product here. In some respects, the tool resembles Mint.com, which was launched in Canada late in 2010. However, as far as I can tell, it’s limited to tracking spending and transactions linked only to BMO bank accounts, lines of credit and BMO Mastercard.
Mint.com is broader in scope since it lets users consolidate information from multiple institutions. A BMO spokesperson said initially MoneyLogic is limited to BMO accounts but that its capability may be expanded later this year.
Even so, the launch is timely, given a flurry of warnings that Canadian families’ debt levels are rising and savings lagging. Canadians are saving 3.3% of their disposable income, down a percentage point from a year ago, according to Frank Techar, president of BMO Canadian personal and commercial banking.
Focus is Saving & Budgeting
The focus of MoneyLogic is saving and budgeting. BMO customer can specify their savings goals — such as putting money away for a new computer or auto — then track their progress as they accumulate funds for that goal. Specific goals can be linked to multiple BMO savings accounts.
Similarly, you can set budget limits and receive notifications when limits have been reached. So if you’re limited yourself to, for example, $500/month on eating out, MoneyLogic will tell you when you’ve hit the wall.
All this budgeting and saving activity can be collected and presented in graphs and charts (see below).
According to Leger Marketing, 40% of Canadians say they could benefit from a tool that tracks their finances on a day to day basis. BMO senior vice president Lynne Kilpatrick says almost half the bank’s personal banking customers do their daily banking online and can benefit from a tool like this.
While BMO claims.....Read more
