A family of six Canadian billionaire heirs to a powerful media empire are among the richest people on the planet, and they all hail from Ontario.
So, what if Canada's richest family decided to be super generous and hand over their combined fortune to every person in their home province? With over 16 million people in Ontario, how much would you actually get? Let's break it down.
The Thomson family — major shareholders of media giants Thomson Reuters and the Globe and Mail through their holding company, the Woodbridge Company — has a combined net worth in the tens of billions of dollars. According to Forbes, the family collectively holds over 310 million shares in Thomson Reuters.
According to the Canadian Encyclopedia, the Thomson Corporation was founded by Toronto newspaper tycoon Roy Thomson in the 1950s, and it quickly grew into one of the world's largest information empires.
After Roy died in 1976, his son Kenneth Thomson took the reins. In 2008, following its acquisition of Reuters Group, the company was renamed Thomson Reuters.
Sherry Brydson, the only child of Kenneth's sister Irma Thomson, is currently the wealthiest person in Ontario and richest woman in Canada, according to Forbes' real-time billionaires list.
The 79-year-old is the largest shareholder in Woodbridge, with a reported 23% stake and an estimated net worth of US$18.6 billion. She tends to keep a low profile and is rarely seen in the media.
Kenneth Thomson died in 2006, passing on his title of Baron Thomson of Fleet to his eldest son David, who also took his seat as chairman of Thomson Reuters.
David Thomson holds a 14% stake in Woodbridge and has a net worth of US$11.3 billion, according to Forbes. He also owns Osmington Capital Partners, an investment firm with a stake in the Winnipeg Jets NHL team, among other major Canadian assets.
David's siblings, Taylor and Peter Thomson, are also reportedly each worth US$11.3 billion.
Taylor Thomson, who previously went by her middle name Lynne, is a former actor. In the early 2000s, she successfully sued Christie's after discovering that a pair of antique urns she'd purchased at an auction were fakes.
Peter Thomson, co-chairman of Woodbridge alongside his brother David, is also the co-founder of Thomvest, a venture capital firm. He's deeply involved in motorsports and owns Thomson Motor Sport, a rally racing team. He's also a competitive driver, having won multiple titles over the years.
Sisters Linda Campbell and Gaye Farncombe each hold an 11% stake in Woodbridge. They're cousins of Sherry Brydson and the Thomsons, and each has a net worth of US$8.9 billion, according to Forbes.
That puts the combined net worth of the six main Thomson heirs at US$70.3 billion. According to Google's currency exchange, that sum is around CAD$95.69 billion.
Statistics Canada estimates that 16,176,977 people are living in Ontario as of the second quarter of 2025.
So, if the Thomson heirs' combined fortune was to be shared equally among the entire population of Ontario, everyone would receive a payment of around $5,915.
That would cover around three months' rent in Toronto!
In fact, they could even give everyone slightly less — say $5,500 each — and still have enough money left for all six family members to each be a billionaire.
The Thomsons won't likely be parting with their entire fortune anytime soon. Still, it's an interesting case study that highlights just how wealthy these individuals are.
What makes it even more eye-opening is that there are currently 23 people in the world with more money than the six Thomsons combined.
Ranking results and exchange rate are based on data collected on July 23, 2025, and are subject to change.
