Background and career
Robert Toru Kiyosaki (born April 8, 1947) is an American businessman, entrepreneur, and author, known for the Rich Dad Poor Dad series of personal finance books. He founded the Rich Dad Company, which provides personal finance and business education through books and videos, and Rich Global LLC, which filed for bankruptcy in 2012.
Kiyosaki was sued in a class action suit filed by attendees of his seminars, and is the subject of investigative documentaries by the CBC, WTAE-TV and CBS News.
Kiyosaki was born in 1947 in Hilo, Territory of Hawaii to Ralph (d. 1991) and Majorie Kiyosaki, who was a nurse. He is the eldest child of a family of Japanese descent. One of his sisters, Tenzin Kacho, was a nun ordained by the Dalai Lama who worked at a Buddhist center in Long Beach, California. The other sister is a graphic designer, and his brother works in property management.
Kiyosaki's father was an educator, once appointed as Hawaii's superintendent of schools. He also ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant-governor in the Republican Party ticket in the 1970 Hawaii gubernatorial election. He lost his job after the election and used his savings to acquire an ice-cream franchise that eventually failed. He later worked for labor unions.
Kiyosaki attended Manoa Elementary School before moving to Hilo. He then graduated from Hilo High School, from which he was nearly expelled due to poor grades. In 1965, he attended the United States Merchant Marine Academy, graduating four years later as a deck officer. After traveling on ships of Matson, Inc. as a midshipman, he joined the U.S. Marine Corps as an officer. Kiyosaki served as a helicopter gunship pilot during the Vietnam War and was once based in Kaneohe Bay.
How Robert Kiyosaki makes money
In 2012, Kiyosaki's company, Rich Global LLC, filed for bankruptcy and was ordered to pay $23.7 million to The Learning Annex and its founder, because Kiyosaki had used The Learning Annex for speaking opportunities. At bankruptcy, the company had nearly $26 million in liabilities and $1.8 million in assets. In January 2024, Kiyosaki stated that he had more than $1 billion in debt.
