Michel Ephrussi was born on May 10, 1844, in Odessa, Ukraine. He was a member of the Ephrussi family. His father, Charles Joachim Ephrussi, was a trader in wheat who founded a bank, Ephrussi & Co. His mother was Henriette Halperson. His elder half-brother, Ignace von Ephrussi, opened a branch of the Ephrussi & Co. bank in Vienna, Austria.
