What is David Thomson's Net Worth?
David Thomson, the 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet, is a Canadian businessman, media magnate, art collector who has a net worth of $50 billion. David Thomson is the Chairman of the Thomson Reuters corporation and his family is the richest in Canada. After his father's passing in 2006, David became the new chairman of the Thomson Corporation, and later became the chairman of the conglomerate Thomson Reuters Corporation following the merger with Reuters Group. He is one of the wealthiest individuals in Canada.
David Thomson lives in Toronto where he guards his privacy closely. Thomson rarely gives interviews but does support many art foundations and The Winnipeg Jets NHL team, which he owns.
David Thomson's career in business has largely been characterized by his work within companies controlled by his family. That business, known up until 2008 as The Thomson Corporation, specializes in "financial services, healthcare sectors, law, science & technology research, and tax & accounting." In 2008, they merged with famous media company Reuters to form Thomson Reuters, which continues to be a big part of the information world to this day.
Thomson himself is known for his somewhat unorthodox lifestyle compared to other wealthy businessmen, keeping a very low profile. Perhaps Thomson's philosophies about life can best be summed up by this quote taken from a 2006 New York Times interview:
"When you try to live a more balanced life, traditional businessmen think that you are not a real man. But who is not the real man? You are telling me? You have not taken a weekend with your wife, you have no spare time that you use constructively, you do not have any hobbies, you do not know how to spell Mozart. And here you are telling me that I am weak?" – David Thomson
Early Life
David Thomson was born on June 12, 1957 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada as the first child of Marilyn and Kenneth. He has a sister named Taylor, as well as a brother named Peter who races cars. As a youth in Canada, Thomson went to Upper Canada College and the Hall School. For his higher education, he moved to England to attend Selwyn College, Cambridge, from which he earned a degree in history in 1978.
Career Beginnings
Thomson began his career in business as a junior associate at the financial services firm McLeod Young Weir. Following this, he worked in various positions for companies controlled by his family, including the department store chains Hudson's Bay and Zellers. Thomson subsequently decided he wanted to establish his independence beyond his family's empire. To do so, he founded the real estate firm Osmington Incorporated, which buys and manages commercial real estate assets on behalf of shareholders. The firm invests heavily in the precision agriculture company FarmersEdge, and is also a partner in True North Sports and Entertainment.
Thomson Corporation
When his father passed away in 2006, Thomson took control of the family fortune and became chairman of the Thomson Corporation. He also inherited the hereditary British title of Baron Thomson of Fleet, making him the 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet after his grandfather and his father.
Once one of the largest information companies in the world, Thomson Corporation was active in health care, financial services, legal affairs, scientific research, and tax and accounting. In 2007, the corporation agreed to merge with the British company Reuters Group in a deal valued at more than $17 billion. The merger resulted in the new conglomerate Thomson Reuters Corporation in 2008. Since then, Thomson Reuters has made hundreds of acquisitions, including of such companies as Streamlogics; Vhayu Technologies; Hugin Group; Breaking Views; Discovery Logic; Complinet; Manatron; GFMS; Acritas; and Gestta Technology. Thomson Reuters is majority owned by the Thomson family's holding company the Woodbridge Company.
Enrique Shore/Alamy
Art Collection
Beyond his business involvement with Thomson Reuters Corporation, Thomson is a renowned collector of fine art. He owns works by such legendary artists as Rembrandt, J. M. W. Turner, Edvard Munch, and Egon Schiele, and also has the world's largest collection of works by John Constable. Thomson has broken records with his art purchases. In 1984, he bought Turner's "Seascape: Folkestone" for a record £7.3 million; the following year, he bough Rembrandt's "Christ Presented to the People" for a record £561,000. However, Thomson ended up selling both masterworks during the financial crisis in the 80s.
Thomson continued to set new records with his art purchases in the 21st century. Along with his father in 2002, he spent $76.7 million to buy Peter Paul Rubens' "Massacre of the Innocents," which later became the centerpiece of the Thomson Collection at the Art Gallery of Ontario. In 2012, Thomson broke further records with his acquisitions of Vilhelm Hammershøi's "Ida Reading a Letter" and an 18th-century British watercolor by John Robert Cozens. In addition to these major purchases, Thomson is an avid collector of Canadian art, including the work of Group of Seven painter Lawren Harris.
Personal Life
Thomson has had a prolific love life. In 1988, he married his first wife, Mary Lou La Prairie. The couple had two daughters named Thyra Nicole and Tessa Lys before divorcing in 1996. Next, in 2000, Thomson married Laurie Ludwick, who gave birth to their son Benjamin following their divorce in 2006. Thomson subsequently dated actress and former model Kelly Rowan, with whom he had a daughter. The pair separated in 2008. Later, in 2014, Thomson began a relationship with Sotheby's employee Severine Nackers; together, they have two daughters named Ottilie and Elodie.
Thomson resides by himself in the Rosedale neighborhood of Toronto; his property features an underground art gallery. Additionally, he owns a number of homes in London. On the philanthropic side of things, Thomson has donated to the Art Gallery of Ontario and London's Archive of Modern Conflict.
