Tokyu

The oldest predecessor of the company was the Musashi Electric Railway (武蔵電気鉄道, Musashi Denki Tetsudō), opened in 1908. The railway's operations were converted into a kabushiki gaisha (company) in 1910. Keita Gotō, a notable Japanese industrialist, was appointed as the CEO in 1920 and he began a major expansion program.

The most important predecessor was first registered on September 2, 1922, as the Meguro-Kamata Electric Railway (目黒蒲田電鉄, Meguro-Kamata Dentetsu). That company was originally founded by the developers of Den-en-chōfu, a residential neighborhood in Tokyo. Meguro-Kamata Electric Railway was acquired by the Musashi Electric Railway in 1924, shortly before Musashi was renamed into the Tokyo-Yokohama Electric Railway (東京横浜電鉄, Tōkyō-Yokohama Dentetsu), also known as the Toyoko, in the same year.

After Musashi/Toyoko's acquisition, the Meguro-Kamata Electric Railway initially operated as a subsidiary of Toyoko. It was not until 16 October 1939 that both Toyoko and Meguro-Kamata Electric railways were formally merged and the new company took the Toyoko name.

In 1938, Toyoko established Toyoko Eiga [ja], possibly to compete with Ichizo Kobayashi's Toho Company. It became the Toei Company in 1951.

Toyoko took its current name on 1 May 1942, after the Japanese government compelled the company to acquire the Odawara Express Railway and the Keihin Electric Railway in 1943 to support Japan's efforts in the Pacific War of World War II. In 1944 it also acquired the Keio Teito Electric Railway (which had merged with Odawara Express before in 1940).

In 1948, after the war, Tokyu divested the acquired companies, and the divested companies are now known as Odakyu Electric Railway, Keikyu Corporation, and Keio Corporation respectively. The 1943–48 era of Tokyu was colloquially known as Dai-Tokyu (lit. Great Tokyu).

The Tokyu Group also owns two smaller railroad companies, Ueda Kōtsū and Izukyū Corporation; several bus companies; and a major upscale department store chain, the Tokyu Department Store operating in Japan and the MBK Center in Bangkok, Thailand. It also runs a number of hotels under the names Tokyu/Pan Pacific in Japan and formerly owned the Pan Pacific Hotels abroad, which it sold to UOL Limited of Singapore.

Formerly the owner of Japan Air System (JAS), Tokyu used to be the largest shareholder of Japan Airlines Holdings (JAL) following JAS's merger with JAL. The Tokyu Group also owns and operates the upscale Tokyu Hotels and budget Tokyu Inns.

From 1958 until 2001, Tokyu also owned the Japanese (now American) Shirokiya department store company. It was the owner of Mago Island until 2005, when Mel Gibson purchased it for US$15 million.

Tokyu Corporation is also the largest single shareholder in the Shizuoka Railway Company, but its holdings in the railway are not part of the group.