"By winding down the indirect retail auto finance business, we have the ability to focus our resources on areas where we believe our competitive positioning is strongest," the bank said in an emailed statement on Sunday.
The bank said it's working closely with "affected employees" to provide support but didn't disclose the number of jobs affected by the move, which includes Canada and the United States.
Canada's third-largest bank by market value booked C$492 million ($361 million) in provisions for credit losses in the quarter ended July 31 as rising borrowing costs increase potential delinquencies. Meanwhile, the bank is absorbing Bank of the West — which it bought a little more than a month before Silicon Valley Bank collapsed in March.
Bank of Montreal offers indirect retail auto financing, working with car dealerships to arrange financing for buyers, who make monthly payments to the lender.
Reuters reported the news earlier.
