Message to Fellow Shareholders from the Chairman and  Chief Executive Officer, Tony Comper We passed two milestones as 2002 drew to a close,  a dynamic intersection of our past and our future. Looking into our proud his tory, we celebrated our 185th anniversary and our track record as the long est-running dividend- paying company in Canada. Casting forward, we unified our diverse busi- nesses under the umbrella of BMO Financial Gr oup, our new name for a new century and a reminder that “bank,” in its past  sense, describes only one part of the enterprise we are building in the se rvice of our customers. AYear ofAccomplishments Leading the list of accomplishments for the year  were solid financial results. Despite challenging market conditions, cash earnings per share were $2.91 excluding non-recurring items – an 8.6% inc rease from the previous year. We met our annual profit targets, achieve top-tier performance in loan loss provisions, and continued to contain cost s.  After persevering over the past few year in making the changes  necessary to boost performance, our relative financ ial performance showed significant improvement as, for example, BMO mov ed from sixth to second among Canada’s major banks in earnings per share  growth. This organiza- tion’s trademark prudence, focus and discipline ha ve enabled us to demon- strate strength to shareholders in a time of advers ity for our industry. Also high on the list of accomplishments in 20 02 was the early success of our transnational growth strategy, which is to continue investing in our core Canadian operations while expanding selectiv ely and substantially in the United States. BMO Financial Group has establ ished its credentials as the original Canada-U.S. bank, doing successfu business across a truly North American economic space. Key Points of  BMOGLYPH<213>s Transnational Growth Strategy b Invest in our core  Canadian franchise. b Expand selectively  and substantially in  the United States. STRENGTH IN A TIME OF ADVERSITY BMO FINANCIAL GROUP ANNUAL REPORT 2002 1