# AI incidents at Bank of Montreal (BMO Financial Group)

Source: https://www.bankingnewsai.com/banks/bmo-group/ai-incidents
Last updated: Oct 21, 2026

## Has Bank of Montreal (BMO Financial Group) had a publicly reported AI incident?

Yes: 1 publicly reported AI incident on record since January 2022.

| Date | Institution | Incident | AI? | Role | Category | Severity | Status |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jun 17, 2025 | Bank of Montreal (BMO Financial Group) | [Instagram ads use AI deepfakes of BMO strategist Brian Belski to lure investors](https://www.bankingnewsai.com/ai-incidents/bmo-group-2025-belski-deepfake-investment-ads) | ML (inferred) | AI used against the institution | Brand impersonation | 1/5 | Reported |

### Instagram ads use AI deepfakes of BMO strategist Brian Belski to lure investors

BleepingComputer reported on 17 June 2025 that Instagram ads run under the name "BMO Belski" used Bank of Montreal's name and AI-generated deepfake videos of BMO chief investment strategist Brian Belski to lure users into a "private WhatsApp investment group". The ads were run from a repurposed Facebook page and kept appearing for days after BleepingComputer reported them to Instagram. After BleepingComputer contacted him, Belski posted a warning that he posts only from his official LinkedIn account, and The Globe and Mail reported his disavowal as part of a wave of impersonation scams targeting Canadian investors. No losses tied to the BMO Belski ads have been reported, and no BMO corporate statement was found.

https://www.bankingnewsai.com/ai-incidents/bmo-group-2025-belski-deepfake-investment-ads

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Part of [BankingNewsAI](https://www.bankingnewsai.com/) — the register of AI incidents at banks: https://www.bankingnewsai.com/ai-incidents. Markdown versions of every reference page: append `.md` to the page URL; index at https://www.bankingnewsai.com/llms.txt.