Toronto Stock Exchange facts for kids

The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) is a very important place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a stock exchange, which is like a marketplace where people buy and sell parts of companies. These parts are called "stocks" or "shares."

The TSX is one of the biggest stock exchanges in the world. It is the 10th largest globally and the third largest in North America. Its size is measured by the total value of all the companies listed on it. The TSX is owned by a company called TMX Group. It helps big companies in Canada trade their shares.

History of the TSX

How the TSX Started

The Toronto Stock Exchange probably began with a group of business people called the Association of Brokers. They formed this group in Toronto on July 26, 1852. We don't have records of what they traded back then.

However, we know that on October 25, 1861, twenty-four brokers met. Brokers are people who buy and sell stocks for others. They created the Toronto Stock Exchange. At first, only 13 companies had their shares listed there. By 1868, this number grew to 18. Many of these were bonds and bank shares.

In 1869, some banks in Canada had problems. This made trading stop for a while because the market was too small. But in 1870, the market got stronger, which made investors feel more confident. Eight of the original 24 brokers came back to restart the TSX. The exchange officially became a company in 1878.

Growing into a Major Exchange

The TSX kept growing, with more and more shares being traded. There was a short time in 1914 when it closed for three months. This was because people were worried about money during World War I.

On the day of the Wall Street crash of 1929, the Toronto exchange quickly heard the bad news from New York. By the afternoon, some of its most popular stocks had lost a lot of their value. The next day, a record number of shares were traded on the TSX. The total value of shares dropped by 20%.

In the 1890s, a gold rush in British Columbia created a need for money to start new companies. The main exchanges in Montreal and Toronto thought these new mining companies were too risky. So, the Toronto Stock and Mining Exchange was created in 1896. This exchange focused on mining companies. It later joined with another exchange in 1899.

Eventually, in 1934, the Toronto Stock and Mining Exchange became part of the Toronto Stock Exchange. This helped Toronto become known as a major financial center for mining. From 1934 onwards, the TSX traded more shares than the Montreal exchange.

The Toronto Stock Exchange Building on Bay Street in 1912.

The new Toronto Stock Exchange trading floor around 1937–39.

The TSX moved to Bay Street in 1913. In 1937, it opened a new trading floor and main office in a beautiful Art Deco building, also on Bay Street. By 1936, the Toronto Stock Exchange was the third largest in North America.

The 1936 exchange building, with a special carving by Charles Comfort.

In 1977, the TSX created the TSE 300 index. An index is like a list that tracks the performance of many stocks together. It also started using a computer system called CATS for trading. This system helped trade shares that were not bought and sold very often.

In 1983, the TSX moved from its old Art Deco building to the Exchange Tower. The old building later became a museum and education center called the Design Exchange. On April 23, 1997, the TSX closed its physical trading floor. This meant all trading would now happen electronically, using computers. It was the second-largest exchange in North America to do this.

In 1999, the Toronto Stock Exchange became Canada's only exchange for trading shares of big companies. Other exchanges took on different roles. For example, the Montreal Exchange started handling "derivatives," which are financial tools based on other assets. Other exchanges merged to form the TSX Venture Exchange, which handles shares of smaller, newer companies. In 2000, the Toronto Stock Exchange became a company that aimed to make a profit. In 2002, its name was shortened to TSX, and it became a public company itself.

The TMX Group Era

In 2001, the Toronto Stock Exchange bought the Canadian Venture Exchange. This exchange was renamed the TSX Venture Exchange in 2002. This led to the creation of a new parent company for the TSX, called the TMX Group. This change meant the name "TSE" was no longer used for the main Canadian stock exchange after 123 years.

On May 11, 2007, the S&P/TSX Composite, which is the main index for the Toronto Stock Exchange, reached over 14,000 points for the first time. On December 17, 2008, the TSX had to close for a whole day. This was the first time this happened because of a technical problem.

TMX offices at the Exchange Tower. The TSX Group was formed in 2001.

In 2011, the London Stock Exchange wanted to merge with the TMX Group. This would have created a huge company worth a lot of money. However, this merger did not happen. A group of Canadian banks and financial companies made their own offer to buy TMX Group. This group wanted to keep the TMX Group under Canadian control.

In March 2015, a new competing exchange called Aequitas Neo opened for trading. This new exchange aimed to be fairer, especially regarding very fast trading practices.

How the TSX Operates

The Toronto Stock Exchange is open for trading from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM Eastern Time. There is also a shorter trading session after the main one, from 4:15 PM to 5:00 PM ET. The exchange is closed on Saturdays, Sundays, and special holidays.

Companies Listed on the TSX

TMX's LED board showing TSX information.

As of January 2024, the Toronto Stock Exchange had 1,811 companies and other financial products listed. The total value of all these companies was about CAD $4.16 trillion. This number grew from March 2023. By the end of January 2024, the total value of companies on both TSX and TSXV reached CAD $4.23 trillion.

The Exchange Tower on King Street West is where many of the TSX's operations are located.

The TSX is home to all of Canada's Big Five commercial banks. These are the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), Bank of Montreal (BMO), Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank), Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), and the Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD). This makes the TSX the main place for banking in Canada.

Many large energy companies are also listed on the TSX. These include Enbridge, Suncor, TC Energy, and Canadian Natural Resources. Many big companies listed on the TSX also have a second listing on an American exchange, like the New York Stock Exchange. This is called a "secondary listing" or "cross listing."

See also

In Spanish: Bolsa de Toronto para niños

• Stock market index
• System for Electronic Document Analysis and Retrieval (SEDAR)
• List of stock exchanges
• List of stock exchanges in the Americas
• List of stock exchange mergers in the Americas
• List of stock exchanges in the Commonwealth of Nations
• S&P/TSX 60
• Category:Lists of companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange