Toronto Stock Exchange Facts for Kids

"TSX" redirects here. For other uses, see TSX (disambiguation).

Toronto Stock Exchange
Quick facts for kids

Type	Stock exchange
Location	[[Toronto, Ontario]], Canada
Coordinates	43°38′53.88″N 79°22′59.88″W / 43.6483000°N 79.3833000°W / 43.6483000; -79.3833000
Founded	25 October 1861; 163 years ago (1861-10-25)
Owner	TMX Group
Key people	John McKenzie (CEO, TMX Group) Loui Anastasopoulos (CEO, Toronto Stock Exchange and Global Head, Capital Formation)
Currency	Canadian dollar
No. of listings	3,476 (January, 2024)
MarketCap	$4.23 trillion (January, 2024)
Indexes	S&P/TSX Composite S&P/TSX 60 S&P/TSX Completion Index

The Toronto Stock Exchange (often called the TSX) is a special marketplace in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It's where people buy and sell parts of big companies, called stocks. When you own a stock, you own a tiny piece of that company. The TSX is one of the largest stock exchanges in the world, ranking 10th globally and 3rd in North America. It's owned by a company called TMX Group.

History of the TSX
How the TSX Works
- Companies Listed on the TSX
See also

History of the TSX

How it Started

The trading floor of the Toronto Stock Exchange around 1937–39. This is where people used to buy and sell stocks in person.

The Toronto Stock Exchange began on October 25, 1861. Twenty-four brokers (people who buy and sell stocks for others) met to create this new exchange. Before this, there was a group called the Association of Brokers, formed in 1852.

At first, the TSX had only 13 companies whose stocks could be traded. By 1868, this number grew to 18. Many of these were bonds or stocks from banks. In 1869, some banks in Upper Canada had problems, which slowed down trading. But in 1870, the market got stronger, and the TSX was restarted. It officially became a company in 1878.

Growing Bigger

The TSX kept growing, except for a short time in 1914 when it closed because of World War I. On the day of the Wall Street Crash of 1929, the TSX was closely connected to the New York stock market. It quickly received the bad news. The next day, a record 331,000 shares were traded on the TSX, and the total value of stocks dropped by 20%.

In the 1890s, a gold rush in British Columbia created a need for money to start new mining companies. The main stock exchanges in Montreal and Toronto thought these companies were too risky. So, a new exchange, the Toronto Stock and Mining Exchange, was created in 1896. This exchange focused on mining companies. It later joined with another exchange in 1899. Finally, in 1934, this mining exchange merged with the Toronto Stock Exchange. This made Toronto a very important place for trading mining stocks. After 1934, the TSX traded more stocks than the Montreal exchange.

Becoming a Major Exchange

The TSX moved to Bay Street in 1913. In 1937, it opened a new building with a trading floor. This building was designed in the Art Deco style. By 1936, the Toronto Stock Exchange was the third largest in North America.

The old Toronto Stock Exchange building, which is now part of the Toronto-Dominion Centre.

In 1977, the TSX created the TSE 300 index, which tracked the performance of 300 major Canadian companies. It also started using a computer system called CATS (Computer Assisted Trading System) to trade stocks. In 1983, the TSX moved to the Exchange Tower. The old Art Deco building became a museum. On April 23, 1997, the TSX closed its physical trading floor. This meant all trading became electronic, done by computers instead of people shouting orders.

In 1999, there was a big change in Canadian stock exchanges. The Toronto Stock Exchange became the only place in Canada to trade stocks of large, well-known companies. The Bourse de Montréal (Montreal Exchange) started focusing on trading derivatives (financial products based on other assets). Other exchanges, like the Vancouver Stock Exchange, joined to form the TSX Venture Exchange, which handles stocks of smaller, newer companies. In 2000, the Toronto Stock Exchange became a for-profit company. In 2002, its name was shortened to TSX.

The TMX Group Era

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

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

On May 11, 2007, the S&P/TSX Composite, which is the main index of 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 because of a technical problem. This was the first time in its history that it closed for an entire trading day due to a glitch.

In 2011, the London Stock Exchange tried to merge with the TMX Group. This would have created a huge new company, possibly the second largest stock exchange in the world. However, the deal didn't happen because it didn't get enough approval from shareholders and faced concerns from Canadian officials.

How the TSX Works

The Toronto Stock Exchange usually operates from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM Eastern Time. There's also a shorter trading period from 4:15 PM to 5:00 PM. It's closed on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays.

Companies Listed on the TSX

Toronto Stock Exchange listed stocks:
0–9 - A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z

An LED board at TMX displaying information about the TSX.

As of January 2024, the Toronto Stock Exchange had 1,811 companies and other financial products listed. The total value of all these companies combined was about CAD $4.16 trillion.

The TSX is home to Canada's five largest commercial banks: 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 a central place for banking in Canada.

Many large energy companies are also listed on the TSX, including Enbridge, Suncor, and TC Energy. These are all part of the S&P/TSX 60 index, which tracks 60 major Canadian companies.

The Exchange Tower in Toronto, where many of the TSX's operations are located.

Many big companies listed on the TSX also have a secondary listing on an American exchange, like the New York Stock Exchange. This means their stocks can be bought and sold in both Canada and the United States.

Toronto Stock Exchange facts for kids

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