Ontario Budget 2001 : ONTARIO SEEKS BUYER FOR PROVINCE OF ONTARIO SAVINGS OFFICE

TORONTO - Finance Minister Jim Flaherty today announced in his 2001 Budget that the government is getting out of the banking business by seeking a buyer for the Province of Ontario Savings Office (POSO). This proposed sale is the first step in the Government of Ontario's Value for Money Review.

"It is clear the private sector has more expertise than we do when it comes to running a bank," Flaherty said.

Operated by the Government since 1921, POSO has 23 branches plus 5 smaller agencies across Ontario that provide limited banking services. POSO does not offer its customers services such as bank machines, credit cards, consumer and business loans, mortgages, RSPs, mutual funds or brokerage services.

The Ontario SuperBuild Corporation will solicit offers to purchase POSO through a fair, open and competitive process. During the sale process the Government of Ontario will continue to guarantee all funds on deposit. To provide security for POSO clients, the Government's guarantee on term deposits will continue until maturity; for POSO chequing and savings accounts the guarantee will continue up to the date of the sale.

Procedures will be put in place to ensure that personal customer information will not be disclosed in the sale process. The Deputy Minister of Finance has written today to the Information and Privacy Commissioner, requesting the Commissioner's assistance in developing a protocol to be followed in the sale process that fulfills all privacy requirements.

For remote POSO locations, the prospective buyer must maintain a physical presence in those communities, and ensure that substantially similar banking services are provided during a planned threeyear transition period.

A request for proposals to hire a financial advisor to assist with the sale will soon be posted on the MERX electronic tendering service (www.merx.cebra.com).

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For more information visit www.fin.gov.on.ca