Agentic AI enters card-servicing workflows
BMO announced on 6 November that AI Agent Assist is being introduced for employees handling Canadian credit-card transaction enquiries through its Virtual Connect contact centre. The system brings transaction matching, policy retrieval and case preparation into the servicing workflow, while employees review the output and remain accountable for decisions. BMO says the contact centre receives more than 500,000 such calls annually, with current resolution times averaging 12 to 14 minutes. The bank is targeting a 20% to 30% reduction for eligible calls and automation of about 40% of qualifying credit-refund requests, potentially enabling same-day credits in some cases. These are BMO's operating targets rather than independently verified outcomes. The deployment is customer-service infrastructure, not an AI agent authorized to make purchases or override dispute rules.
What it means for merchants
Merchants should expect faster cardholder enquiries to increase pressure for equally clear evidence. Keep descriptors recognizable, retain fulfilment and refund records, and ensure support teams can answer issuer requests without relying on opaque AI-generated summaries.
Read the original announcement
BMO Financial Group · 6 Nov 2026This brief summarizes the linked primary source. Claims and reported figures have not been independently audited by Payment Guide.