One of the great things about Canada is that people from all walks of life can be successful.
Currently, there are 53 billionaires in the country, with many coming from Toronto.
Curious about the richest people in Toronto? Check out who made the cut.
1. Sherry Brydson
Estimated net worth: $17.3 billion
Brydson owns 23% of investment firm Woodbridge, which controls Thomson Reuters, a worldwide multimedia news and information provider. Brydson and her family, namely cousin David Thomson, tend to top most wealthy lists throughout Canada.
In addition to her Woodbridge investment, Brydson has stakes in the hospitality, aviation, media, and food service industries. She’s well known for her charitable contributions, specifically for women’s rights and the environment.
2. Rogers Family
Estimated net worth: $11.57 billion
The Rogers family started in communication when Edward Rogers Sr. invented the first battery-less radio. His son took it a step further and founded Rogers Communications, the telecommunications giant that operates the internet, wireless TV, and telephones found throughout Canada.
In addition, the family owns many notable sports teams, including the Toronto Blue Jays.
3. David Thomson
Estimated net worth: $10.7 billion
Like his cousin, Sherry Brydson, Thomson is heavily involved in the family business founded by his grandfather. He serves as chairman of Woodbridge, Thomson Reuters, and the Globe and Mail newspapers.
The family owns a stake in Bell Canada, and Thomson invested in True North Entertainment, which owns the Winnipeg Jets hockey team.
4. Peter Thomson
Estimated net worth: $10.7 billion
Thomson owns a 14% interest in Woodbridge and is also the co-chair. He’s the daredevil of the Thomson family, participating as a rally race car driver for Thomson Motor Sport.
He serves on the board of other private companies and, along with his wife, makes regular charitable contributions to various organizations throughout Toronto.
5. Taylor Thomson
Estimated net worth: $10.7 billion
We’re not finished with the Thomson family yet. Taylor Thomson, sister of David and Peter, holds the same stake in Woodbridge as her brothers but also carved out her own path.
Thomson graduated with a law degree and worked as a lawyer before making her way into the acting world. Before moving on to real estate, she appeared in various television shows and movies.
6. Gaye Farncombe
Estimated net worth: $8.69 billion
Another Thomson family member, Farncombe’s main source of wealth, is her ties to the Woodbridge investment company. She owns 11%.
Along with her husband and another partner, Farncombe owned Murron’s Cabinetree, a high-end furniture store that closed in 2019. Farncombe and her sisters are big-time charitable supporters of cancer research.
7. Linda Campbell
Estimated net worth: $8.4 billion
Campbell owns an 11% stake in Woodbridge, the firm that controls Thomson Reuters. While that’s her main source of wealth, Campbell keeps busy with all her philanthropic work.
She’s on the boards of many not-for-profits and regularly works with her sisters to fund cancer research and advocate for mental health issues.
8. Carlo Fidani
Estimated net worth: $4 billion
Fidani took over the family business after his father passed away in 2000. The Orlando Corporation manages commercial spaces. In addition, they purchase high-value lands and develop them from start to finish.
Known for his charitable ways, Fidani made a $10 million contribution to the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Medicine to help with Ontario’s shortage of qualified family physicians.
9. Apostolopoulos Family
Estimated net worth: $3.9 billion
The family’s wealth comes from the privately held real estate firm Triple Group. It was started by Andreas Apostolopoulos, a Greek immigrant.
Apostolopoulos initially started a cleaning business and plastic manufacturing company before investing in commercial real estate and its development.
Apostolopoulos purchased the Pontiac Silverdome in Michigan for a bargain basement price and invested millions into it to bring it back to its original glory.
10. Hal Jackman
Estimated net worth: $3.5 billion
Jackman’s family owns shares in Toronto investment and insurance holding company, E-L Financial Corporation. While the bulk of the family’s wealth comes from the financial sector, the Jackmans are heavily involved in public life.
Jackman served as Lieutenant Governor of Ontario in the 1990s and Chancellor of the University of Toronto.
11. Bruce Flatt
Estimated net worth: $3.5 billion
Flatt, CEO of Brookfield Asset Management, formerly Brascan, helped revive the struggling company to become one of the top alternative asset managers in the world.
Because of his success in turning a business around and his own self-made fortune, he’s often compared to American business magnate Warren Buffet.
12. Mark Leonard and Family
Estimated net worth: $3.4 billion
Mark Leonard founded Constellation Software in 1995. The company then acquired other software tech firms, generating billions for Leonard and his family. They’ve bought out more than 500 companies since their inception.
You can find Constellation Software on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The company went public in 2006.
13. Stephen Smith
Estimated net worth: $3.14 billion
Smith made his fortune as the co-founder, chair, and CEO of First National Financial, a mortgage lender. Smith started the company in 1988, only four years after declaring his own bankruptcy.
He also owns half of Canada Guarantee Mortgage Insurance Company. Smith gives back, too. He donated $50 million to Queens University, where the business school is named after him.
14. Catherine Phillips
Estimated net worth: $2.89 billion
Phillips made the list because of her savvy investment deal. She and her husband, John Phillips invested early in Shopify and never looked back.
Phillips is an author and psychologist who aids cancer patients. Her book, Calm Your Mind, Warm Your Heart shared stories of those battling cancer to help others in the same situation.
15. John Phillips
Estimated net worth: $2.89 billion
Husband of Catherine, John Phillips, made the bulk of his fortune through his early investment in Shopify.
He’s also worked as a corporate lawyer and executive at cellular telephone service provider Clearnet.
16. Jack Cockwell
Estimated net worth: $2.64 billion
Cockwell, an accountant, helped build up Brookfield Asset Management, one of the largest money managers.
During his time at the company, he worked on real estate, mining, and forestry deals.
17. Mitchell Goldhar
Estimated net worth: $2.4 billion
Goldhar is the owner of SmartCentres, the company that developed Walmart-anchored shopping centers. He’s also a part of other real estate developments throughout the country, including the Vaughan Metropolitan Center.
18. Garrett Camp
Estimated net worth: $2.3 billion
Camp first started StumbleUpon, a web discovery platform, in 2002. eBay purchased it in 2007 for $75 million. Next up, Camp co-founded Uber, the very popular ride-sharing service.
He continues working with other startup companies, including Expa, a studio aimed at helping startup companies and Eco, a cryptocurrency project.
19. Reichmann Family
Estimated net worth: $2.33 billion
After leaving their native Austria and moving throughout Europe and Morocco, the Reichmann family settled in Canada. The brothers started a flooring and tile business as well as a real estate company, Olympia & York.
Olympia & York had development deals throughout the world, but during a project in London during the recession of 1992, the company declared the project bankrupt. After recovering slightly, the company was sold in 2005.
20. Joseph and Ted Burnett
Estimated net worth: $2.29 billion
The Burnett’s fortune started with their father’s trucking business. He hauled groceries between Ontario towns and opened the Super Carnival grocery chains. When the stores were sold, the Burnett family got involved in real estate development, building malls all over the province.
21. Naomi Azrieli
Estimated net worth: $2.26 billion
Azrieli inherited much of her fortune from her father and sits as executive director of the Azrieli Group. The Azrieli Group is the Israeli portion of the business, which involves real estate investment.
Canpro Investments is the Canadian portion that manages the business. Azrieli is also chair and CEO of the Azrieli Foundation, the largest philanthropic organization in Canada.
22. Slaight Family
Estimated net worth: $2.26 billion
The Slaight patriarch founded Slaight Communications, a private multimedia company which he sold in the mid-2000s.
Slaight and partners were the big guns behind bringing the Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies to Canada. In addition, he started the Slaight Family Foundation, focusing on helping seniors, indigenous people, and mental health issues.
23. Gerald Schwartz
Estimated net worth: $1.88 billion
Schwartz worked as a corporate lawyer at U.S.-based investment firm Bear Stearns. After returning to Canada, he cofounded Canwest Global Communications, a mass media outlet holding radio, television, and broadcasting assets.
Schwartz also founded the credit and investment advisory firm Onex Corporation, which is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
24. Michael Lee-Chin
Estimated net worth: $1.7 billion
Lee Chin’s fortune came from his savvy investing in financial companies like National Commercial Bank Jamaica and AIC Limited.
25. Samuel Family
Estimated net worth: $1.68 billion
The Samuel brothers started the family’s steel business back in 1855. Today, the family still owns and oversees the company Samuel, Son & Co. They specialize in metal processing and distribution.
The family also formed The Samuel Family Foundation, which focuses on poverty, human rights, and climate change.
26. Eric Sprott
Estimated net worth: $1.67 billion
Sprott formed his investment company, Sprott Securities, and eventually sold it to his employees. From there, he invested a good chunk of his fortune into gold and silver, as well as another company, Sprott, Inc.
Sprott, Inc. provides brokerage and lending services and went public in 2008.
27. Marcel Adams and Family
Estimated net worth: $1.6 billion
After surviving the Holocaust, Adams moved to Canada and started Iberville Developments Ltd. The company manages real estate like shopping centers, offices, and residential properties.
Adams’s son, Sylvan, currently runs the family business.
28. Bill Malhotra
Estimated net worth: $1.6 billion
Malhotra founded Claridge Homes, a real estate development company that builds condos, houses, and retirement homes.
Before starting the company, he worked as the Chief Structural Engineer for the city of Ottawa.
29. Seymour Schulich
Estimated net worth: $1.56 billion
Schulich was president and vice chairman of the pension fund management company Beutel, Goodman & Company.
But one of the reasons his fortune is so large is due to his royalty arrangements within the mining industry. Schulich and a partner pioneered royalty payments that let him get an ownership stake in some of the most profitable mines.
30. Lawrence Tanenbaum
Estimated net worth: $1.5 billion
Tanenbaum currently serves as chairman and CEO of Kilmer Van Nostrand Company, a civil engineering firm specializing in heavy construction and paving, including subways, bridges, and tunnels.
He also owns 25% of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, which owns several sports teams, including the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, and Toronto FC soccer team.
31. Dani Reiss
Estimated net worth: $1.5 billion
Reiss is president and CEO of his family’s business, Canada Goose. The company manufactures winter clothing, including parkas, vests, hats, gloves, and other apparel.
Reiss made headlines when he chose to keep the company’s manufacturing endeavours within Canada instead of moving them to Asia to increase his profit margins.
32. Anton Rabie
Estimated net worth: $1.5 billion
Rabie is the co-founder and co-CEO of the toy company Spin Master. Its featured brands include Hatchimals, Air Hogs, and Paw Patrol.
The company went public on the Toronto Stock Exchange in 2015.
33. Kuldip Rai Sahi
Estimated net worth: $1.38 billion
Kuldip Rai Sahi is the CEO of Morguard Corporation. The company owns retail, office, and hotel properties, as well as manages real estate and financial investments.
In addition, he’s also the CEO of ClubLink Enterprises Limited, the largest operator of golf clubs throughout Canada.
34. Michael McCain
Estimated net worth: $1.38 billion
McCain grew up in the family business and started working there in the late 1970s. McCain Foods Limited produces frozen foods and is the largest manufacturer of frozen potato products.
In addition to his duties there, McCain is also the president and CEO of Maple Leaf Foods.
35. Ronnen Harary
Estimated net worth: $1.38 billion
Back in 1994, Harary and his college buddies started a toy company with the Earth Buddy, a small-headed Chia pet equivalent that would sprout hair. It was a success, and the team went on to produce even more well-known toys.
Spin Master acquired Marbles and Etch-A-Sketch during their tenure and even trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
36. Latner Family
Estimated net worth: $1.12 billion
Albert Latner dropped out of law school when his wife became pregnant. He worked for his father-in-law’s construction company and helped turn Greenwin Inc. into a successful real estate development firm.
The company was behind many of the suburban homes and apartment complexes seen throughout the city today.
37. Leon Family
Estimated net worth: $1.10 billion
The Leon family owns a controlling interest in the furniture store Leon’s. It first opened in 1909 in Ontario after Ablan Leon came to Canada from Lebanon.
A portion of the furniture store’s shares is traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
38. Patrick Dovigi
Estimated net worth: $1.08 billion
Dovigi’s first dream was to make it big in the NHL after being drafted by the Edmonton Oilers. When that didn’t pan out, he started Green For Life Environmental Inc., which purchased smaller waste management companies.
Soon, he landed large waste management deals throughout Toronto and even the United States.
39. Saul Feldberg
Estimated net worth: $1.01 billion
After fleeing Poland after World War II, Feldberg found himself in Canada working for a furniture maker. He found ways to cut costs and eventually took over the business.
In the 1960s, he cofounded Global Furniture Group, which made affordable office furniture.
40. N. Murray Edwards
Estimated net worth: $.9 billion
Edwards co-owns the Calgary Flames hockey team but got his start investing in oil and gas. He owns stakes in several oil and aerospace companies as well as various ski resorts throughout Canada.
How Many Millionaires Reside in Toronto?
Toronto is home to an impressive number of millionaires – totalling 105,200. This statistic not only speaks to Toronto’s prosperity but also underscores the city’s role as a major economic powerhouse in Canada.
One of the factors contributing to this wealth generation is Toronto’s status as the financial capital of Canada. Many of Canada’s major banks and financial institutions are headquartered in the city, employing thousands of high-earning professionals.
The real estate industry in Toronto has also played a significant role. Over the years, the city has seen a surge in property values, turning many homeowners into millionaires almost overnight.
Toronto’s burgeoning tech sector is another key player. Rapid technological advancements and the rise of start-ups in the city have led to substantial wealth generation for entrepreneurs, software engineers, and executives alike.
Final Thoughts
These rich Canadians came from all walks of life to either create their fortunes or help expand their family empires.
Curious about other wealthy Canadians? Check out the richest people in the country.
