The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition that Bank of Montreal beefed up its wealth management business on Thursday by acquiring Burgundy Asset Management for $625-million. A triple-bylined item led by Andrew Willis says that Toronto-based Burgundy manages $27-billion for wealthy families and foundations and is owned by its employees, including co-founders Tony Arrell and Richard Rooney. To ensure these clients and their advisers at Burgundy move over to the bank, BMO will hold back $125-million of the purchase price and pay it out 18 months after the transaction closes if Burgundy holds on to a predetermined amount of assets. Burgundy's owners will receive BMO shares in payment for the asset manager, a tax-efficient structure. If profits at Burgundy meet certain targets in the future, BMO said it may also include an earn-out payment. Burgundy was founded in 1990 and has 150 employees at offices in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. In a note to clients on Thursday, Mr. Arrell said the company had planned to deal with succession by selling the founders' stake in the firm to new staff. Mr. Arrell pitched Burgundy to a number of banks and asset managers over the past year prior to striking a deal with BMO.