TMX Group Limited is a Canadian financial services company that operates equities, fixed income, derivatives, and energy markets exchanges. The company provides services encompassing listings, trading, clearing, settling and depository facilities, information services as well as technology services for the international financial community.
TMX Group is best known for its stock exchanges, Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), which serves the senior equity markets, and TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV), which serves the public venture equity market. TSXV was formerly known as the Canadian Venture Exchange (CDNX), but it also owns and operates other exchanges in Canada, including Montréal Exchange and TSX Alpha Exchange, as well as the country's depository, clearing and settlement business, CDS. TMX Group also owns and operates TMX Equity Transfer Services, Shorcan Brokers Limited, the Canadian Derivatives Clearing Corporation (CDCC), as well as stakes in both CanDeal.ca Inc. and BOX Options Exchange. Other notable subsidiaries of TMX Group include Trayport Limited, the developer of the Joule electronic trading platform for energy markets, and TMX Datalinx, which provides data products and services.
TMX Group is headquartered in Toronto and operates offices across Canada (Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver), in key U.S. markets (New York City, Houston, Boston and Chicago), and overseas (London, Beijing, Singapore and Sydney).
History
In 2001, the Toronto Stock Exchange acquired the Canadian Venture Exchange (formed by the merger of the Vancouver Stock Exchange and Alberta Stock Exchange on November 29, 1999), which was renamed the TSX Venture Exchange on July 31, 2001. The acquisition was carried out through a parent company, TSX Group Inc.
The Montreal Exchange was acquired on December 10, 2007 for C$1.31 Billion. The acquisition was completed on May 1, 2008 and the corporation subsequently renamed to TMX Group Inc.
On June 11, 2008 at a meeting of shareholders of TSX Group Inc, a resolution to change the name of the corporation to TMX Group Inc. was put forward. The formal vote for the deal took place in September.
On February 9, 2011, the London Stock Exchange Group announced that they had agreed to merge with the TMX, creating a combined entity with a market capitalization of $5.9 billion (£3.7 billion). Xavier Rolet, CEO of the LSE Group, will head the company, while TMX Chief Executive Thomas Kloet will become president. Based on data from November 30, 2010 the new stock exchange would be the second largest in the world with a market cap 47% greater than the Nasdaq. Announced on June 1, 2011, the provisional name for the combined group would be LTMX Group plc.
On June 13, 2011, a rival bid from the Maple Group of Canadian interests, was unveiled: a cash and stock bid of $3.7 billion CAD, in hopes of blocking the LSE Group's takeover of TMX. The group is composed of the leading banks and financial institutions of Canada. Luc Bertrand, spokesman for Maple Group and one of the drivers of the bid, is vice chairman of the National Bank of Canada and also TMX Group's largest individual shareholder.
On June 22, 2011, the LSE Group and TMX agreed to pay a special dividend to shareholders. The special dividend is meant to sway voters away from Maple Group's rival bid. The dividend was valued at $678 million, with TMX shareholders receiving $4 per share and LSE shareholders receiving $1.36 per share. Including the special dividend, the LSE agreement would be valued at $48.90 per share versus the $48 per share of Maple. The exchanges also pledged to maintain the dividend at least as high as the current TMX annual payout, which is C$1.60 a share.
On June 29, LSEG and TMX terminated the merger plans after it appeared that the merger would not be approved by the needed two-thirds majority of TMX shareholders.
On July 11, 2012, Maple Group's deal was approved by all federal and provincial regulatory authorities, including the Ontario Securities Commission and the Autorité des marchés financiers.
On July 31, 2012 Maple Group announced that it won control of the TMX Group, as 91% of shares were tendered for its takeover offer. The formal vote for the deal will take place in September.
On January 21, 2013 TMX Group announced that combined, Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange were first in the world among global exchanges by number of new listings for the fourth consecutive year, according to data from the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) as of December 31, 2012.