The Bank of Montreal, operating as BMO Financial Group, is a Canadian multinational banking and financial services corporation. One of the Big Five banks in Canada, it is the fourth-largest bank in Canada by market capitalization and assets, as well as one of the ten largest banks in North America. On June 23, 1817, John Richardson and eight merchants signed the Articles of Association to establish the Bank of Montreal in a rented house in Montreal, Quebec. The bank officially began conducting business on November 3, 1817, making it Canada's oldest bank.