The Mitsubishi Group is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries.
It is historically descended from the Mitsubishizaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870, founded by Iwasaki Yataro, to 1947 and was disbanded during the occupation of Japan following World War II. The former constituents of the company continue to share the Mitsubishi brand and trademark. Although the group companies participate in limited business cooperation, most famously through monthly "Friday Conference" executive meetings, they are formally independent and are not under common control. The four main companies in the group are MUFG Bank (the largest bank in Japan), Mitsubishi Corporation (a general trading company), Mitsubishi Electric and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (both being diversified manufacturing companies).
