Corporate body

Bourse de Montréal

The beginnings of the Montreal Exchange/La Bourse de Montréal can be traced to private stock trading between merchants at the Exchange Coffee House as early as 1832. In 1842 the Board of Stock and Produce Brokers was established to promote the sale of stock and produce in a more regular and systematic manner. By 1862 the Board was split into two parts; the Corn Exchange, which specialized in produce and the Board of Stock Brokers. In 1872 the Board of Brokers changed its name to the Montreal Stock Exchange and two years later received a provincial charter. The Montreal Curb Market, founded in 1926, became the Canadian Stock Exchange in 1953, and merged with the Montreal Stock Exchange in 1974. In 1982 the Montreal Stock Exchange changed its name to the Montreal Exchange. The Montreal Exchange and the Montreal Curb Market/Canadian Stock Exchange were organized along similar lines. Each had a chief governing body elected annually from among its members. For the Montreal Exchange, this body was and still is called the Governing Committee while its equivalent for the Montreal Curb Market/Canadian Stock Exchange was named the Board of Management. These bodies consisted of several governors, a chairman, vice-chairman and secretary treasurer. Initially they performed most of the executive and management function of their respective organizations. They appointed sub-committees from the membership of the exchange which were responsible for the major function of the exchanges. For example, each exchange had committees responsible for listings, member relations, regulation of floor transactions and the administration of their buildings. In 1883 the first salaried employee, an Assistant Secretary was hired by the Montreal Stock Exchange to help keep the Exchange's records. In the 1920's the increased trading activity on the exchange had led to the hiring of managers and other employees to handle the mounting paper burden. By 1938 the Governing Committee had appointed a senior paid official, with the title of General Manager, and given him general executive powers over the affairs of the exchange. By 1945 the general manager was responsible for the administration of all the departments of both the Montreal and Canadian Stock Exchanges. He was aided by a manager responsible for the Canadian Stock Exchange and other managers or supervisors responsible for the individual departments of the exchanges. In 1956 in order to bestow greater executive powers on the chief official of the exchanges the position of President was created. The President became the chief executive officer of the Exchanges and responsible for the planning and direction of the exchange's activities. Since 1956 Vice-Presidents and Executive Vice-Presidents have been appointed to assume responsibility for the internal operations and administration of the exchange. The pre-1956 managers or supervisors have been replaced by Directors who like their predecessors are responsible for the departments of the exchange. At various times in its history the Montreal Stock Exchange has organized subsidiary companies. Some like the Exchange Clearing House Company, the Exchange Printing Company and the Esprit Ltd., (another printing company) were an outgrowth of the exchange's internal operations. Since transactions on the exchange involved the buying and selling of shares between member firms, a clearing house was established to regulate and tabulate the results of these sales. The printing companies reflect the need to publish the results of transactions for potential investors. Other subsidiary companies reflect the stock exchanges' response to investors demand for services which were not normally provided by the exchange, for example the Canadian Commodity Exchange Inc.