CIBC, Safeway Inc. Offer Electronic Banking to U.S.

[Toronto, CANADA] — CIBC and Safeway will begin
offering financial services at Safeway stores in Sacramento and San
Jose, California and Denver, Colorado later this summer.

Services will be offered to Safeway’s customers throughout the western
United States through the Internet, ATMs, telephone call centers, and
in-store pavilions, branded under the banner, Safeway Select Bank.

“What differentiates our strategy from our competitors is that we
combine our industry-leading electronic banking capabilities with some
of the most visible and successful retailing brands in North America,”
said CIBC chairman and chief executive officer John Hunkin. “We are
extremely pleased to create this alliance with Safeway, a powerful brand
and one of North America’s largest and fastest growing supermarket
chains.”

“The Safeway alliance represents an important growth opportunity for
us,” added Hunkin. “We believe a ‘clicks and bricks’ e-banking strategy
will prove the most successful in the dot.com world. Our strategy allows
us to quickly gain customer acceptance and confidence through trusted
brands, allowing us to reach millions of new customers and offer them
the powerful combination of Internet and in-store banking.”

Safeway Inc. is a Fortune 50 company and one of the largest food and
drug retailers in North America based on sales.