The Bank of Montreal is scaling back the daily amount customers can withdraw from automated banking machines in a bid to curb fraud losses.

The $1,000 limit is being cut to $500 per day, said BMO director of communications Ron Monet. The change will only apply to customers who normally never withdraw the daily maximum limit.

"It's another feature, part of an overall effort to reduce our customers' exposure to debit-card fraud," Monet said. "As a financial institution as well it protects us."

In 2007, bank-card fraud totaled nearly $160,000, an increase of 11 per cent from the year before. But Monet said for the first time this year, BMO had observed a decline.

"In recent years there has been a growth of debit-card fraud, although we've experienced a decreasing phenomenon over the past quarter or so in the past year," he said, noting the bank has swapped all of its older ABMs with newer, more secure machines.