Baron Joseph Yozel Günzberg (1812–1878) was the son of Gabriel Jacob (1793–1853), who, according to the family genealogists, was of the 15th generation of the Günzburg family. Born in Vitebsk he received a traditional education, and acquired wealth in the 1840’s as a lessee of the liquor monopoly and later as an army contractor. In 1857 he settled with his family in Paris but retained his enterprises in Russia. In 1859 he founded the Joseph Yevsel Günzburg Bank, in St. Petersburg, which rapidly became one of the chief financial institutions in Russia and contributed significantly to the development of credit financing in that country. He participated in financing railroad construction and the development of gold mines in the Urals, Altai, and Trans-Baikal Siberia.

Günzburg tried to utilize his contacts with influential Russian circles to improve the situation of the Jews, and especially to win rights of permanent Jewish residence outside the Pale of Settlement for specific categories of Jews, such as merchants, craftsmen, or demobilized soldiers. In this he was successful. The first synagogue in St. Petersburg was built as a result of his efforts. He was one of the founders of the Society for the Promotion of Culture among the Jews of Russia in 1863 and supported its activities. Günzburg provided scholarships for Jewish youth to encourage higher education, especially in medicine, and donated substantial sums to encourage Jews to engage in agriculture, which he regarded as an important step toward improving their situation. In addition to awarding prizes for agriculture, he devoted the income from his extensive estates in southern Russia to settling Jews on these lands. He died in Paris and was buried in the family sepulcher there. He had one daughter and four sons.