The trucking world just lost a crystal‑ball. BMO’s transportation finance arm, the only bank that published a weekly credit‑quality snapshot, is being sold. That means the data that dispatchers, fleet owners, and lenders have relied on for years will vanish, just as diesel prices climb to $4.12 per gallon and credit spreads tighten.
What happened
BMO announced it will divest its transportation finance unit to a private equity firm later this year. The unit historically released a “BMO Trucking Credit Index” that broke down delinquencies, loan‑to‑value ratios, and lender exposure across the U.S. and Canada. John Kingston of FreightWaves, who has been tracking the index for three years, says the data will no longer be public once the sale closes. At the same time, the index showed credit quality improving: delinquency rates fell from 8.7% in Q4‑2023 to 6.2% in Q2‑2026.
Why it matters for dispatchers/drivers
Dispatchers use the BMO index to gauge carrier health. A rising delinquency rate is a red flag that a carrier may cut lanes, delay payments, or go under, directly affecting driver pay cycles. For owner‑operators, the index helped negotiate better factoring terms because lenders could see the broader market trend. Without it, lenders will lean on internal models that are less transparent, likely tightening credit and raising factoring fees. The loss also hurts market analysts who forecast capacity; less data means more guesswork, potentially leading to sudden capacity squeezes that hit spot rates.
My take
BMO’s exit is a power move by banks to keep profitable data in-house, not a benevolent “sell‑off”. It will force the industry to rely on opaque, proprietary models that favor large carriers and banks, leaving small fleets and owner‑operators in the dark. This is a step backward for market transparency and a win for the financiers who want to control the narrative. Trucking needs open data, not closed doors.
What you should do
- Start tracking your own credit health: monitor payment aging, loan‑to‑value ratios, and factoring fees weekly.
- Diversify financing sources now; consider alternative lenders that publish their own metrics.
- Enroll in EK Dispatch Academy’s **Finance & Credit** module (/curriculum) to learn how to read balance sheets and protect your cash flow.
*— Ekjot Singh*