Yasuda Zenshirō II

Yasuda Zenshirō (June 18, 1877 – October 8, 1937) was a Japanese businessman. He served as the president of Dai San Bank, Toyama Bank, and Higo Bank, among other positions. His father was Yasuda Zenjirō (formerly Horikawa Unojki), and Yasuda Zenshirō was the son-in-law of the individual who built the Yasuda zaibatsu.

He was born as the eldest son of the first Yasuda Zenshirō. His childhood name was Zenkich. In 1897, following the death of the first Yasuda Zenshirō, he inherited his title and became the president of Kyosai Life Insurance. In 1898, he was appointed president of Dai San Bank, and in 1919, he also became president of the insurance company. He served as president of Dai San Bank again in 1923 and became president of Toyama Bank in 1924. Additionally, in 1898, he served as president of Higo Bank.

Furthermore, Yasuda Zenshirō held roles as an officer in several other financial institutions and companies. He was president of Dai San Bank, Seiroku Bank, Nihon Nichiyu Bank, and Tochigi Farm and Commercial Bank. He also served as a director of Yasuda Bank, Yasuda Savings Bank, and Yasuda Trading. Other roles included director of Hakata Bay Railway and Steamship, director of Kyosai Life Insurance, auditor of Yasuda Trust, director of Yasuda Shorea School, and councilor of Yasuda Shutoku Society.

Regarding family relations, his father, Yasuda Zenshirō, worked as a servant under the first Yasuda Zenjirō during his childhood, and later became the adopted son-in-law of Tsuruko, the adopted daughter of Zenjirō. His mother managed a Western clothing shop called "Kashiwaya" at Tsuruko's family home. Zenjirō helped Tsuruko after she was troubled under the shop’s eaves in her youth, and out of gratitude, he later adopted her daughter, Tsuruko. His wife was Mine, the third daughter of the first Zenjirō.

His eldest son, Yasuda Kuneo, graduated from Tokyo Commercial University (now Hitotsubashi University) and worked at the Bank of Japan. He later became president of Yasuda-affiliated Dai San National Bank and the 98th National Bank. The residence inherited from Zenshirō is still preserved today as "Kyū Yasuda Kuneo Teien" (Old Yasuda Kuneo Residence Garden). His father-in-law was Baron Iwasa Shin.

His fourth son, Yasuda Kashiō, graduated from the University of Tokyo’s Faculty of Economics and served as an executive at Yasuda Life Insurance and other Yasuda-affiliated companies. His father-in-law was Baron Ōsumi Zembō.

The former Yasuda Kuneo residence was located in Sendagi, Tokyo. Initially built by Yoshisaburō Fujita, it was purchased by Zenshirō after the Great Kanto Earthquake, when Fujita moved to Momozono, Nakano. Zenshirō had lost his own home in Nihonbashi Koami-cho in the earthquake and moved into this property. His eldest son Kuneo inherited the residence in 1937, and in 1995, it was donated along with its garden to the Japan National Trust. In 1998, it was designated as a Place of Scenic Beauty by Tokyo.

References and footnotes mention works such as "Showa Housing" by Yasutake Tsuji, Takahiro Ooi, Aya Iida, and Rokusuke Wada, published by Ex-knowledge in 2014.