Toronto Mayor confident in rebound of the city’s economy
Toronto Mayor John Tory has spoken positively about the potential of the Toronto economy to recover quickly from the fiscal uncertainty of the last 18 months. Mayor Tory is hanging his hat firmly on the technology scene in Canada’s biggest city to lift Toronto out of the doldrums, which appears to be attracting interest from some of the world’s biggest tech firms.
Tory revealed in a recent interview with Bloomberg Television that the city is increasingly in demand for prime-grade office space, revealing that “well-known companies including Reddit, Netflix and Uber” have opened new offices in Toronto during recent months. As the heartbeat of the nation’s finance and commerce, Toronto is being looked upon as the beacon of hope for the rest of the Canadian economy.
Mayor Tory said that the last 18 months has been “very, very tough” on Toronto’s “downtown business”. However, he believes these firms are “ready to take on renewed challenges” and opportunities are available as the Canadian economy reopens its doors. Mayor Tory confirmed he has been conducting “virtual trade missions” for the city in recent months, banging the drum for Toronto’s tech space.
Toronto was described last year by Forbes as a “heavy-hitting global tech hub”. In fact, Toronto’s tech sector is now performing at the same level as other leading tech hubs across North America and further afield. It all boils down to the evolution of the fabled Toronto-Waterloo Corridor – an area spanning 100 kilometres – which now contains more than 5,000 start-ups and 15,000 established tech firms, making it the second-biggest tech cluster after Silicon Valley.
The most impressive high-potential start-ups in Toronto revealed
There are multiple high-potential tech start-ups to watch in Canada’s largest city. With an employment rate of 95% across Toronto, its tech space is most likely to drive new jobs and investment in the months and years ahead. Drop is one of the most successful start-ups in Toronto of recent years. Established in 2015, this consumer loyalty service, which enables shoppers to accrue Drop “points” for buying goods or services with connected debit or credit cards, now has more than a million active users across Canada and the US. It is now partnered with some of North America’s biggest retailers.
Toronto is also leading the way with North America’s cryptocurrency sector. The city is home to the bitbuy cryptocurrency exchange, which is one of the fastest and most popular ways to buy and sell Bitcoin for Canadians. According to BuyBitcoinWorldwide, bitbuy makes it possible to buy altcoins like Ethereum and Litecoin too using traditional bank wire or Interace e-Transfers. Transaction fees are also a mere 0.1% and bitbuy is the only platform in Canada to offer 1:1 Bitcoin insurance, giving crypto investors total peace of mind.
Another of the most fascinating tech start-ups in Toronto is integrate.ai. The firm which combines intelligence across multiple industries with machine-based learning, has launched the first artificial intelligence (AI) driven consumer intelligence platform. Founded by former Facebook and Instagram employee Steve Irvine, its services deliver “rich, relevant insights” that businesses can trust.
With Toronto boasting some of the world’s fastest-growing tech firms and the best tech firms to work for – based on the likes of LinkedIn, Forbes, CBRE and Canada’s Top-100 – Mayor Tory is right that the sector still has further scope for growth.
Other articles from totimes.ca – mtltimes.ca – otttimes.ca
You must be logged in to post a comment.