Sir Terry Matthews receives the Key to the City of Ottawa

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe presented the Key to the City to Sir Terry Matthews at a special ceremony held last night during the community networking event TechTuesday at the Brookstreet Hotel in Kanata.

This honour recognizes Sir Terry Matthews’ outstanding contributions to business innovation, philanthropy, and the economic development of Ottawa, as well as his impact on the national and international stage.

As the founder and Chairman of Wesley Clover International, Sir Terry has played a pivotal role in building Ottawa’s global reputation as a hub for technology and entrepreneurship. Over several decades, he has founded or supported more than 100 companies and has been instrumental in fostering innovation, investment, and job creation within the region.

Through his leadership and philanthropic efforts, Sir Terry has also made lasting contributions to community development, education, and research, helping to shape Ottawa’s growth and prosperity.

Sir Terry Matthews founded Wesley Clover International in 1972, a private, global investment management firm and holding company. Of the more than 100 companies Terry has founded or funded, three of them have grown to exceed $1 billion in valuation.  Early data networking giant Newbridge Networks and global business communications leader Mitel are highlights. 

More than 140 founders have now been backed by Wesley Clover International, with more than $1 billion in direct investment.  More than 20 IPOs, a larger number of exits via acquisition, and more than $4 billion in public returns have been produced. 

Today, Wesley Clover International has interests in a range of next-generation cloud and SaaS technology companies, as well as in selected commercial real estate and leisure properties.  In addition to being the Chairman of Wesley Clover, Terry is also Chairman of a number of these private and publicly traded companies, and he sits as a Director on the Boards of several others. 

Terry holds an Honours degree in electronics from the University of Wales and is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical Engineers and of the Royal Academy of Engineering.  He has been awarded honorary doctorates by several universities, including the University of Wales and Carleton University in Ottawa.  In 1994, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), and in 2001, as part of the Queen's Birthday Honours, he received the honour of Knight Bachelor.  He was also appointed Patron of the European Cancer Stem Cell Research Institute in 2011, and in 2017, was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada for his outstanding achievements.

The Key to the City is Ottawa’s highest honour, awarded to individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the city through their achievements in areas such as public service, business, technology, arts, or sport. Previous Key to the City recipients include women’s curling team, Team Homan, tennis player Gabriel Dabrowski, author Margaret Atwood, photographer Yousuf Karsh, the Community Foundation of Ottawa, actress Sandra Oh and retired hockey player Daniel Alfredsson. The Key to the City was last awarded to tennis player Gabriela Dabrowski. 

The Key to the City ceremony took place at the Brookstreet Hotel in Kanata as part of a TechTuesday event where members of the community gathered to celebrate this well-deserved recognition.

Quote

“There is no one more deserving of the Key to the City than Sir Terry Matthews. For more than 50 years, he has seen the potential of Ottawa in a way that very few others have. He has invested in this city, helped build its tech sector, and been an extraordinary champion for Ottawa every step of the way. And of course, there is the remarkable legacy of companies he has founded and supported over his career as a technology entrepreneur. These are companies that have created thousands of jobs and helped put Ottawa on the global map. We are deeply grateful to Sir Terry Matthews. We are incredibly fortunate that he chose Ottawa, and even more fortunate that he continues to call it home.”

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe