The recently integrated TD Canada Trust offers its customers the best overall online banking experience n Canada, according a new report on online banking released today.

TD Bank won the Best Online Product award in 2000 in the Quicken.ca annual Online Banking Report. Last year Canada Trust won the award.

The Quicken.ca team judged each financial institution on 40 items that included features, ease-of-use and extra mile service.

At the conclusion of the research TD Canada Trust placed first for the Best Online Product and also won this year’s award for Best Value by providing the most services at a competitive cost.

Bank of Montreal moved up from second last in 2000 to take second place in overall online banking. The full results from the 2001 Online Banking Report are available at http://www.quicken.ca.

“Online banking has really taken off in Canada in recent years, and as customers become more savvy they expect better service,” said Lee Horigan, General Manager, Quicken.ca. “This year, our results show that banks are giving customers higher quality services, more flexibility in their payment options and more access to their transaction records. It’s all part of a movement to bring the Internet banking experience closer to the traditional banking model.”

“We’ve worked to ensure our site is easy to use, always available, and provides customers with a wide range of services,” said Chuck Hounsell, TD’s senior vice-president for internet banking. “Winning this award once again reinforces our leadership position in the Canadian market and confirms we have the right focus. We’re very excited.”

For the 2001 Online Banking Report, the online services of Bank of Montreal, TD Canada Trust, CIBC, Citizens Bank, National Bank, President’s Choice, Royal Bank and ScotiaBank were rated.

Financial institutions earned points for such items as the ability to apply for a line of credit online, being able to transfer funds to another person’s account at a different bank, allowing a new customer to sign up for a new account online without having to visit a branch and responding to email inquiries in a timely fashion.

At the final count, TD Canada Trust came out on top with 36 out of a possible 45 points. Bank of Montreal was noted for expanding its services dramatically over the last year, including online mortgage approval and bill presentment.