Upon graduation, he started working for the
Ministry of Finance, where one of his colleagues was
Takeo Fukuda, who later became
prime minister. Together with
Hayato Ikeda, Minister of Finance, and
Kiichi Miyazawa, his secretary—both of whom later became prime ministers—he played a central role in negotiating with the
Allied Occupation Force about the economic policies and finances of occupied Japan. After resigning from ADB, Watanabe took on a number of roles including advisor to the
Bank of Tokyo, President of the
Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCRA), and honorary chairman of Japan Silver Volunteers Inc. He was also the first Japanese chairman of the
Trilateral Commission. His book of memoirs of ADB "Towards a New Asia" was published in 1973. ==References==