Yoko Ono, quiet heiress to Japanese Yasuda banking empire
Yoko Ono is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist, best known internationally as the wife of John Lennon of the Beatles. She was born on February 18, 1933, in Tokyo, Japan, into a wealthy and elite family with significant financial and cultural influence in both Japan and the U.S.
Family Background:
- Father: Eisuke Ono
A prominent banker who worked for the Yasuda Bank, which later became part of Fuji Bank (now part of Mizuho Financial Group). He was Japanese and held high-level banking positions that took the family to various international postings, including San Francisco and New York. - Mother: Isoko Ono (née Yasuda)
Isoko descended from the Yasuda family, one of the wealthiest and most powerful zaibatsu (financial conglomerate) families in pre-war Japan. The Yasuda group controlled banking, insurance, and various industrial assets in Japan. This lineage means Yoko Ono is heir to the Yasuda banking fortune on her mother’s side.
Education & Early Life:
- Ono received elite education in both Japan and the United States.
- She was the first woman accepted into the Philosophy program at Gakushuin University, a school attended by members of the Japanese imperial family.
- Later, she studied at Sarah Lawrence College in New York, a liberal arts school known for its artistic programs.
Summary:
Yoko Ono is the daughter of a Japanese banking executive and heiress to the Yasuda banking empire — making her part of one of Japan’s most monied and influential families. Her background placed her firmly in elite financial and intellectual circles, long before she became famous through her avant-garde art and marriage to John Lennon.
