Yasuda Zenjiro
Encyclopedia
was a Japan
ese entrepreneur from Toyama
, Etchu Province
(present-day Toyama Prefecture
) who founded the Yasuda zaibatsu (安田財閥). He donated the to the University of Tokyo
. He was the great-grandfather of Yoko Ono
.
in Etchu Province, moved to Edo
at the age of 17 and began working in a money changing house. In 1863, he started providing tax-farming services to the Tokugawa Shogunate
. After the Meiji Restoration
, he provided the same services to the new Meiji government. Yasuda profited from the delay between the collection of taxes and their forwarding to the government. He greatly magnified his wealth by buying up depreciated Meiji paper money
that the government subsequently exchanged for gold
.
Yasuda helped establish the Third National Bank in 1876. Later, in 1880, Yasuda set up the Yasuda Bank (later the Fuji Bank
, now Mizuho Financial Group
) and the Yasuda Mutual Life Insurance Company (later merged to form Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance), which he organized into a zaibatsu
holding company. In 1893, the Yasuda zaibatsu absorbed the Tokyo Fire Insurance Company (renamed the Yasuda Fire and Marine Insurance Company, now Sompo Japan Insurance
).
Yasuda was among the best financiers that Japan had; however he was not adventerous and hardly expanded the business beyond finance. Most of the industrial houses associated with Yasuda were actually those that Asano Soichiro started, whom Yasuda trusted and provided loans to. More accurately, therefore, they belonged to Asano Zaibatsu and were merely affiliated to Yasuda Zaibatsu.
In his later years, he donated the Yasuda Auditorium to the Tokyo Imperial University and the Hibiya Kokaido hall. Yasuda was assassinated in 1921 when he refused to make a financial donation to an ultra-nationalist
.
Yasuda was the maternal great-grandfather of avant-garde artist and singer Yoko Ono
, the widow of musician John Lennon
. Lennon on seeing Yasuda's Photograph for the first time is reported to have said 'That's me in a former life.' To which Ono replied 'Don't say that... He was assassinated.' Lennon was himself shot and killed.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese entrepreneur from Toyama
Toyama, Toyama
is the capital city of Toyama Prefecture, Japan, located on the coast of the Sea of Japan in the Chūbu region on central Honshū, about 200 km north of the city of Nagoya and 300 km northwest of Tokyo....
, Etchu Province
Etchu Province
was an old province in central Honshū, on the Sea of Japan side. It was sometimes called , with Echizen and Echigo Provinces. It bordered Echigo, Shinano, Hida, Kaga, and Noto provinces...
(present-day Toyama Prefecture
Toyama Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Hokuriku region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Toyama.Toyama is the leading industrial prefecture on the Japan Sea coast, and has the industrial advantage of cheap electricity due to abundant water resources....
) who founded the Yasuda zaibatsu (安田財閥). He donated the to the University of Tokyo
University of Tokyo
, abbreviated as , is a major research university located in Tokyo, Japan. The University has 10 faculties with a total of around 30,000 students, 2,100 of whom are foreign. Its five campuses are in Hongō, Komaba, Kashiwa, Shirokane and Nakano. It is considered to be the most prestigious university...
. He was the great-grandfather of Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
.
Biography
Yasuda Zenjirō, the son of a poor samuraiSamurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
in Etchu Province, moved to Edo
Edo
, also romanized as Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of the Japanese capital Tokyo, and was the seat of power for the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868...
at the age of 17 and began working in a money changing house. In 1863, he started providing tax-farming services to the Tokugawa Shogunate
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...
. After the Meiji Restoration
Meiji Restoration
The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...
, he provided the same services to the new Meiji government. Yasuda profited from the delay between the collection of taxes and their forwarding to the government. He greatly magnified his wealth by buying up depreciated Meiji paper money
Paper Money
Paper Money is the second album by the band Montrose. It was released in 1974 and was the band's last album to feature Sammy Hagar as lead vocalist.-History:...
that the government subsequently exchanged for gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
.
Yasuda helped establish the Third National Bank in 1876. Later, in 1880, Yasuda set up the Yasuda Bank (later the Fuji Bank
Fuji Bank
The was one of Japan's major banks during the post-World War II era. It combined with Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank and the Industrial Bank of Japan in 2000 to form Mizuho Financial Group, and changed its name to Mizuho Corporate Bank in 2002 after transferring its retail banking operations to Mizuho...
, now Mizuho Financial Group
Mizuho Financial Group
, abbreviated as MHFG, or simply called Mizuho is a banking holding company headquartered in the Ōtemachi district of Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan...
) and the Yasuda Mutual Life Insurance Company (later merged to form Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance), which he organized into a zaibatsu
Zaibatsu
is a Japanese term referring to industrial and financial business conglomerates in the Empire of Japan, whose influence and size allowed for control over significant parts of the Japanese economy from the Meiji period until the end of World War II.-Terminology:...
holding company. In 1893, the Yasuda zaibatsu absorbed the Tokyo Fire Insurance Company (renamed the Yasuda Fire and Marine Insurance Company, now Sompo Japan Insurance
Sompo Japan Insurance
, or Sompo Japan , is a Japanese insurance company. It is the second-largest property insurance company in Japan only behind Tokio Marine, with market share of 19.3% in 2007....
).
Yasuda was among the best financiers that Japan had; however he was not adventerous and hardly expanded the business beyond finance. Most of the industrial houses associated with Yasuda were actually those that Asano Soichiro started, whom Yasuda trusted and provided loans to. More accurately, therefore, they belonged to Asano Zaibatsu and were merely affiliated to Yasuda Zaibatsu.
In his later years, he donated the Yasuda Auditorium to the Tokyo Imperial University and the Hibiya Kokaido hall. Yasuda was assassinated in 1921 when he refused to make a financial donation to an ultra-nationalist
Uyoku dantai
Uyoku dantai are Japanese nationalist right-wing groups.In 1996, the National Police Agency estimated that there are over 1000 right wing groups in Japan with about 100,000 members in total.-Tennō period:...
.
Yasuda was the maternal great-grandfather of avant-garde artist and singer Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
, the widow of musician John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
. Lennon on seeing Yasuda's Photograph for the first time is reported to have said 'That's me in a former life.' To which Ono replied 'Don't say that... He was assassinated.' Lennon was himself shot and killed.