Tōru Iwasaki

Tooru Iwasaki (born June 30, 1950 – June 6, 2023) was a Japanese businessman. The Iwasaki family belonged to the founding lineage of the Mitsubishi Zaibatsu, and genealogically, he was the eldest son, he was born in Tokyo. His father was Eiichiro Iwasaki, and his maternal grandfather was Hakushu Kitahara. His family includes a great-grandchild of Yanosuke Iwasaki.

He graduated from Keio University Faculty of Economics and subsequently joined Mitsubishi Corporation. As part of the company's language training program, he undertook training alongside Marubeni and Mitsui & Co., and was soon dispatched for two years to Salvador, Brazil. During his time there, he became fluent in Portuguese, mastering reading and writing as well.

In 1976, he returned to Japan and began working at Mitsubishi Corporation in Brazil. By 1982, he was working in the Brazilian branch of Mitsubishi Corporation. Later, he adopted Hiromiya Iwasaki, a direct descendant of the fourth-generation head of the Iwasaki Yataro family, who was childless, by entering a formal adoption (Yōshi). He became the adopted heir.

In 1996, he moved to Brazil to be involved in the management of the Higashiyama Group. In Brazil, he served as a dedicated director of the Japan-Brazil Chamber of Commerce and Industry and as chairman of the Brazil Small and Medium Enterprise Committee. Notably, as head of the Brazil Japan Chamber of Commerce, he contributed to the establishment of a cross-industry "Entrepreneurship Committee." He also served as a councilor for the Campinas Japan-Brazil Cultural Association Management Council.

Regarding his family relationships, he was a descendant of the next generation but had once dissolved the adoption due to conflicts over family assets within the Iwasaki family.

On June 6, 2023, he was found dead in the bathroom of his home in Campinas, Brazil. He was 72 years old at the time of his death.

Reference materials include "Bunshun Weekly," Vol. 54 (1976), "Heisei New Clan Lineage Great Compilation," Hiroyuki Kikuchi's "Japan’s 15 Major Zaibatsu," among others. Additionally, a feature was published in "Weekly Diamond," January 30, 2016.

External links include the website of the Higashiyama Farm in Brazil and official reports from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding his inspection activities.