Bank of the West is now BMO (Bank of Montreal)

"Bank of the West - We've Joined BMO" sign at the E Lincolnway branch - Optopolis

If you've previously passed by either of Cheyenne's Bank of the West locations prior to September, you may have noticed the signage indicating that "Bank of the West has joined BMO," or if you've gone by more recently, you may have noticed Bank of the West's signage has been completely removed. That's because Bank of Montreal (BMO) has acquired Bank of the West.

A touch of history

Bank of the West previously had two locations in Cheyenne. One was located on Dell Range Blvd-the property assessor noting a build date of 1984, and the other one was located on E Lincolnway, the assessor noting a build date of 2001.

Bank of the West/bear logo branding seen on the E Lincolnway location in 2018 - Google Maps Street View

Both buildings had been occupied by Bank of the West since at least 2007. Many will remember the bear logo displayed next to a classic-looking font displaying "Bank of the West."

Sometime between mid-2018 and mid-2019, both locations were rebranded to "Bank of the West / BNP Paribas." This change removed the bear logo from both buildings.

Bank of the West/BNP Paribus signage seen on the E Lincolnway location just before rebranding to BMO - Optopolis

BMO Acquires Bank of the West

Back in February 2023, BMO announced that it had completed the acquisition of Bank of the West from BNP Paribas. They mentioned that in early September 2023, the bank systems would be converted.

By July, signage was going up at various Bank of the West locations including the two Cheyenne locations indicating that "Bank of the West...joined BMO."

"Bank of the West - We've Joined BMO" signage seen on the Dell Range branch's standalone sign - Optopolis

On September 2nd (part of Labor Day Weekend), all branches including the Cheyenne locations would be temporarily closed. BMO's website indicates that the locations would reopen on September 5th as BMO. One can find more info about the transition on this page on BMO's website.

BMO removes Bank of the West's branding

Sometime over the last two weeks, temporary signage on the two Cheyenne branches was taken down, revealing the anticipated name change to just "BMO." As fully anticipated here at Optopolis upon seeing some of the signage lit at night, all of the signage that advertised Bank of the West would be changed or removed, such that only BMO would be displayed.

New BMO signage displayed on the Dell Range Blvd location - Optopolis

Visiting BankOfTheWest.com now redirects people to BMO's website. According to the transition page on BMO's website, all the phases of the transition from Bank of the West to BMO have been completed.

What are your thoughts of BMO acquiring Bank of the West? Do you think BMO will be able to offer better or worse service than that which Bank of the West provided?

Location: Cheyenne, WY, USA

Comments

Post a Comment
Get new posts by email:

follow.it Follow/Subscription feed is powered by follow.it.

Popular posts from this blog

Sprouts Farmers Market is coming to Cheyenne! First Wyoming location!

Image
Truck sits in front of Bed Bath and Beyond while construction work takes place inside - Optopolis Cheyenne is getting a new competitor in the grocery store market! Sprouts Farmers Market is in the process of setting up shop in the former Bed Bath and Beyond. The space has already been gutted! A glance at the Bed Bath and Beyond space If you've been following the journey here at Optopolis, you probably already know this story, so here's a quick run-down of the history of Bed Bath and Beyond as it relates to Cheyenne. Building built 2007 according to property assessor, part of the then-Cheyenne Marketplace Bed Bath and Beyond would be the original tenant of its space In the first week of February 2023, BB&B was silently announced to close Final day was on Apr 23, 2023, the same day BB&B filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Spirit Halloween set up shop for the 2023 season, opening in August and closing shortly after Halloween Spirit Halloween inside of Cheyenne's Bed Bath
Read more

Dutch Bros Coffee is coming to Cheyenne (for real)

Image
Dutch Bros Coffee sign on the North Lincoln Avenue location in Loveland, Colorado - Optopolis That's right, Dutch Bros Coffee is trying again, and it looks significantly more promising this time around! A Dutch Bros location is slated to be built along East Pershing Boulevard just west of the Pershing Marketplace. Previous events with Dutch Bros and Cheyenne Back in late 2021, site plans visible in the Cheyenne City Planning and Development website indicated the old Dell Range Rolando's Mexican Grill would be demolished and that Dutch Bros was planning to build a restaurant there. View of former Rolando's on Dell Range - Optopolis About a year later in late 2022, there was a "Building Permit Reimbursement" item added to one of the permits, requesting closure of the account and reimbursement of the building permit at the site of the former Fernando's. Not long after, the former Fernando's was put back on the market, and a temporary sign advertising the lo
Read more

Old Chicago closes Cheyenne restaurant!

Image
Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom sign illuminated after closing on the final day - Optopolis This was quite last minute, but it's true. Cheyenne's Old Chicago Pizza and Taproom permanently closed yesterday evening, at least an hour before their normal closing time of 10 PM on Sundays. A glance at the history of it According to Old Chicago's about page , Old Chicago dates back to its 1976 founding in Boulder, Colorado. They brag about their "tavern thin and classic thick crust pizzas" and their "110 local and legendary beers." Here at Optopolis, their pizza and broccoli-cheese soup (pictured below) were go-to items to eat in visits to the restaurant throughout the years. "I think this was the first place I ever tried the broccoli and cheddar soup," recalls Optopolis while recording a brief video clip. "I don't think I tried anywhere else before that, as far as I remember." The Laramie County Property assessor notes that Cheyenne'
Read more