Confidential documents found in Laval

Montreal, 8 October 2003 - 

The two boxes contained eight pages affecting seven customers

The two boxes of documents, which were put in the trash by a National Bank of Canada branch in Laval, recovered by Laval police on Saturday and returned to the Bank, contained documents that were, for the most part, not confidential except for eight pages concerning seven customers.

The non-confidential documents in the trash belonged to an employee who had recently quit his job. The employee had kept certain customer files as samples for doing his work. These confidential files about seven customers should have been removed and destroyed but were inadvertently left in the boxes that went in the trash.

The Bank, which has had very strict procedures in place for some time to guarantee the confidentiality of customer information, is taking this situation very seriously and intends to meet with the seven customers to apprise them of the situation, apologize and offer to remedy the situation if necessary. Moreover, the Bank is looking into the incident further so as to take steps to ensure that it does not recur.

About the National Bank of Canada

National Bank of Canada is an integrated group which provides comprehensive financial services to consumers, small and medium-sized enterprises and large corporations in its core market, while offering specialized services to its clients elsewhere in the world. The National Bank offers a full array of banking services, including retail, corporate and investment banking. It is an active player on international capital markets and, through its subsidiaries, is involved in securities brokerage, insurance and wealth management as well as mutual fund and retirement plan management. The National Bank has assets of over $75 billion and, together with its subsidiaries, employs over 17,000 people. The Bank's securities are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (NA:TSX). For more information, visit the Bank's website at www.nbc.ca.

Information (the telephone number and e-mail address provided below are for the exclusive use of journalists and other media representatives):

Denis Dubé
Manager, Public Relations Department
National Bank of Canada
Tel.: (514) 394-8644
E-mail: denis.dube@bnc.ca