Canon vs JPMorgan Chase: Founders, CEOs and History
Canon was founded in 1937 by Takeshi Mitarai, Goro Yoshida, Saburo Uchida and is led by Fujio Mitarai. JPMorgan Chase was founded in 1799 by Aaron Burr, Alexander Hamilton, John Pierpont Morgan and is led by Jamie Dimon.
Company facts
Canon
- Founded
- 1937
- Headquarters
- Ota, Tokyo, Japan
- Current CEO
- Fujio Mitarai
- Employees
- 165,547
JPMorgan Chase
- Founded
- 1799
- Headquarters
- New York, New York
- Current CEO
- Jamie Dimon
- Employees
- 318,512
Founders
Canon
Takeshi Mitarai
Takeshi Mitarai supported the camera laboratory that Goro Yoshida, Saburo Uchida and Takeo Maeda opened in 1933, and became president of its successor, Precision Optical Industry, Co., Ltd., in 1942.
Goro Yoshida
Yoshida took apart a Leica Model II and, as he later recalled, was angered to find it was built from brass, aluminium, iron and rubber yet sold for 420 yen.
Saburo Uchida
Saburo Uchida (1899-1982) co-founded the Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory with Goro Yoshida, his brother-in-law, and Takeo Maeda in November 1933.
Takeo Maeda
Takeo Maeda (1909-1977) was the youngest of the founding group. A former subordinate of Saburo Uchida, he joined Uchida and Goro Yoshida in opening the Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory in Roppongi in November 1933 and worked on the Kwanon prototype and…
JPMorgan Chase
Aaron Burr
Aaron Burr, the New York lawyer and politician who later served as U.S. vice president, led the 1799 effort to charter the Manhattan Company.
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton, the first U.S. Treasury Secretary, is linked to JPMorgan Chase's history through his involvement in the 1799 Manhattan Company charter effort alongside Aaron Burr.
John Pierpont Morgan
J. Pierpont Morgan co-founded Drexel, Morgan & Co. with Anthony Drexel in 1871, the partnership that became J.P. Morgan & Co. in 1895. The firm financed railroads and organized industrial combinations such as U.S. Steel in 1901.
CEOs and their tenures
Canon
- Takeshi Mitarai1942–1974
President
An obstetrician who backed the 1933 camera laboratory, he became president of Precision Optical Industry in 1942 and led the company as it became Canon Camera Co. in 1947, listed in Tokyo in 1949 and opened sales offices in New York and Geneva in the 1950s.
Source - Ryuzaburo Kaku1977–1989
President, later Chairman
As President, he aggressively challenged Xerox's monopoly in the copier market by introducing affordable, personal laser printers and copiers.
Source - Fujio Mitarai1995–present
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Born in 1935 and a nephew of Takeshi Mitarai, he joined Canon in 1961, ran Canon U.S.A. as president from 1979 to 1989 and became president of Canon Inc. in 1995.
Source - Tsuneji Uchida2006–2012
President and Chief Operating Officer
During his tenure as President, he maintained strong profitability through strict cost-cutting measures despite the brutal collapse of the digital compact camera market.
Source - Masaya Maeda2016–2020
President and Chief Operating Officer
He led the Image Communication Products group during the height of the DSLR era, cementing Canon's position as the global market leader in interchangeable lens cameras.
Source - Kazuto Ogawa2026–present
President and Chief Operating Officer
Joined Canon in 1981 and led Canon Singapore (2005), Canon Canada (2008) and Canon U.S.A. as President and COO (2018).
Source
JPMorgan Chase
- William B. Harrison Jr.2000–2005
Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Harrison's tenure connects the creation of modern JPMorgan Chase with the leadership structure that followed. He oversaw the first stage of integrating Chase and Morgan, then added Bank One's consumer and middle-market operations.
Source - Jamie Dimon2006–present
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Dimon's tenure established the operating and risk framework associated with JPMorgan Chase's scale. The company combines Consumer & Community Banking, Commercial & Investment Bank, and Asset & Wealth Management rather than relying on one earnings engine.
Source - Jeremy Barnum2021–present
Chief Financial Officer
He oversees capital, liquidity and financial reporting for a $4.9 trillion balance sheet.
Source - Doug Petno2026–present
Co-President and CEO, Commercial & Investment Bank
He oversees JPMorgan's largest segment by managed revenue, which produced $78.5 billion in FY2025.
Source - Troy Rohrbaugh2026–present
Co-President and CEO, Consumer & Community Banking
He now runs the Chase consumer franchise, which produced $76.0 billion of FY2025 managed revenue.
Source
Timeline: Canon and JPMorgan Chase side by side
1799JPMorgan Chase
Manhattan Company Chartered
Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton led the effort to obtain a New York charter for the Manhattan Company.
1871JPMorgan Chase
Drexel, Morgan & Co. Formed
J. Pierpont Morgan and Anthony Drexel formed Drexel, Morgan & Co. in New York. The partnership developed into J.P. Morgan & Co., creating the Morgan banking lineage that would remain separate from Chase until the companies combined in 2000.
1907JPMorgan Chase
Panic of 1907
During the Panic of 1907, J. Pierpont Morgan organized bankers and other private participants to support strained financial institutions. The episode became a defining part of the Morgan firm's history in an era before the Federal Reserve existed.
1933Canon
Precision Optical Instruments Laboratory opens
Goro Yoshida, Saburo Uchida and Takeo Maeda open a camera laboratory in a Roppongi apartment in Tokyo to build a Japanese 35mm camera that could rival the Leica.
1934Canon
Kwanon prototype
Yoshida builds the Kwanon, Japan's first 35mm focal-plane-shutter camera prototype, named after the Buddhist goddess of mercy. It never goes on sale.
1936Canon
Hansa Canon goes on sale
The lab's first commercial camera, the Hansa Canon, uses a Nikkor lens and rangefinder supplied by Nippon Kogaku, the predecessor of Nikon. The 'Canon' trademark had been filed in 1935.
1937Canon
Precision Optical Industry incorporated
The business is incorporated on August 10, 1937 as Precision Optical Industry, Co., Ltd. Takeshi Mitarai becomes president in 1942.
1949Canon
Tokyo Stock Exchange listing
Canon Camera Co. (renamed in 1947) lists on the Tokyo Stock Exchange when postwar trading resumes, and opens a New York branch in 1955.
1955JPMorgan Chase
Chase Manhattan Created
The Bank of the Manhattan Company merged with Chase National Bank to form Chase Manhattan Bank. This combination joined the firm's oldest 1799 predecessor with the Chase name and created the institution that later merged with J.P. Morgan.
1964Canon
Canola 130 calculator
Canon moves beyond cameras with the Canola 130 desktop electronic calculator, followed in 1970 by Japan's first plain-paper copier, the NP-1100, and its first semiconductor lithography tool, the PPC-1.
1969Canon
Renamed Canon Inc.
Canon Camera Co. changes its name to Canon Inc. to reflect a product range that now spans business machines as well as cameras.
1987Canon
EOS system launches
Canon launches the EOS 650 and the all-electronic EF lens mount, the base of its autofocus SLR and later digital SLR lines.
1995Canon
Fujio Mitarai becomes president
Fujio Mitarai takes over as president, exits personal computers and other loss-making lines, and in 1996 starts the Excellent Global Corporation Plan.
2000JPMorgan Chase
Chase and J.P. Morgan Merge
Chase Manhattan and J.P. Morgan & Co. completed their merger, combining commercial and consumer banking with investment banking and institutional services. JPMorgan Chase identifies this transaction as the formation of the modern company.
2003Canon
Start of No. 1 camera share run
Canon takes the No. 1 share of the global interchangeable-lens digital camera market, a position it has held every year through 2025.
2004JPMorgan Chase
Bank One Merger
JPMorgan Chase completed its $58.546 billion stock-for-stock merger with Bank One on July 1.
2006JPMorgan Chase
Jamie Dimon Becomes CEO
Jamie Dimon succeeded William B. Harrison Jr. as chief executive on January 1. Dimon had joined JPMorgan Chase as president and chief operating officer when the Bank One merger closed and became chairman one year after becoming CEO.
2008JPMorgan Chase
Bear Stearns Acquired
JPMorgan Chase completed its acquisition of Bear Stearns during the financial crisis.
2008JPMorgan Chase
Washington Mutual Operations Acquired
After Washington Mutual Bank entered FDIC receivership, JPMorgan Chase paid $1.9 billion to acquire its banking operations, including assets, deposits, and qualified financial contracts under the transaction terms.
2016Canon
Toshiba Medical acquisition
Canon completes the ¥665.5 billion (about $5.9 billion) purchase of Toshiba Medical Systems in December 2016, later renamed Canon Medical Systems.
2018Canon
EOS R mirrorless system
Canon launches the full-frame EOS R mirrorless system and RF lens mount.
2023Canon
Nanoimprint lithography launch
Canon releases the FPA-1200NZ2C nanoimprint lithography system in October 2023, able to pattern 14 nm lines, and delists its ADRs from the New York Stock Exchange in March.
2023JPMorgan Chase
First Republic Acquired from FDIC
JPMorgan Chase acquired the substantial majority of First Republic Bank's assets and assumed deposits and certain liabilities from the FDIC.
2024Canon
First NIL shipment and medical impairment
Canon ships its first nanoimprint system to the Texas Institute for Electronics on September 26, 2024, and books a ~$1.11 billion (¥165.1 billion) goodwill impairment on its medical business for the year.
2025Canon
Record net sales of ~$31 billion (¥4,624.7 billion)
Canon reports record 2025 net sales of ~$31 billion (¥4,624.7 billion) and net income attributable to Canon Inc. of ~$2.23 billion (¥332.1 billion).
2025JPMorgan Chase
FY2025 Net Revenue of $182.447B
JPMorgan Chase reported U.S. GAAP total net revenue of $182.447 billion and net income of $57.048 billion. Its managed, fully taxable-equivalent segment presentation reported $185.581 billion of total net revenue across CCB, CIB, AWM, and Corporate.
2026Canon
Phase VII plan and new president
Canon unveils its 2026-2030 Phase VII plan, merges Canon Medical's operations into Canon Inc. on April 1, and appoints Kazuto Ogawa President and COO on March 27 while Fujio Mitarai stays Chairman and CEO.
2026JPMorgan Chase
Chase to Become Apple Card Issuer
On January 7, 2026 Apple and Chase announced that Chase will replace Goldman Sachs as Apple Card issuer over about 24 months.
2026JPMorgan Chase
Co-Presidents Named
Doug Petno and Troy Rohrbaugh were named co-presidents in June 2026, and Marianne Lake announced her retirement.
Acquisitions
Canon
- Canon Electronics (minority shares)2026Undisclosed
- Redlen Technologies2021$335M
- BriefCam2018Undisclosed
- Kite2017Undisclosed
- Toshiba Medical Systems2016$5.9B
- Axis Communications2015$2.8B
JPMorgan Chase
- First Republic Bank2023$10.6B
- The Bear Stearns Companies Inc.2008$1.5B
- Washington Mutual banking operations2008$1.9B
- Bank One Corporation2004$58.5B
- J.P. Morgan & Co.2000Undisclosed
Questions about Canon vs JPMorgan Chase
Who is the CEO of Canon Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co.?
Canon Inc. is led by Fujio Mitarai and JPMorgan Chase & Co. is led by Jamie Dimon. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Canon Inc. founded vs JPMorgan Chase & Co.?
JPMorgan Chase & Co. was founded in 1799 — 138 years before Canon Inc., which was founded in 1937. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Canon Inc..
How many employees does Canon Inc. have compared to JPMorgan Chase & Co.?
Canon Inc. employs approximately 165,547 people, while JPMorgan Chase & Co. employs approximately 318,512. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has the larger workforce at 318,512 employees, compared to Canon Inc.'s 165,547. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Canon Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. headquartered?
Canon Inc. is headquartered in Japan and JPMorgan Chase & Co. is headquartered in United States. Their different home markets mean they may face different regulatory frameworks, tax regimes, and currency exposure.
Who founded Canon Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co.?
Canon Inc. was founded by Takeshi Mitarai, Goro Yoshida, Saburo Uchida, Takeo Maeda. JPMorgan Chase & Co. was founded by Aaron Burr, Alexander Hamilton, John Pierpont Morgan.
Which company has a longer operating history — Canon Inc. or JPMorgan Chase & Co.?
JPMorgan Chase & Co. has been operating for approximately 227 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Canon Inc. has been in operation for around 89 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Canon vs JPMorgan Chase overview