Bill Gross, co-founder of investment giant PIMCO, is one of the world’s most influential figures when it comes to the bond market, managing $1.2 trillion in securities. His investment decisions have often lead to excellent results for his clients and helped turn his $236 billion Total Return fund into the world’s largest bond fund.

During the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis when many big investors were reeling from deep losses, Gross made a bet to go long on Fannie and Freddie bonds, and was one of the first to predict the agency-backed mortgage lenders would get a government bailout. This decision lead to a $1.7 billion payout for his fund.

The very vocal Gross is a regular fixture on business news network CNBC and is the author of numerous articles on the bond market.

Morningstar named Gross “Fixed Income Manager of the Decade” for 2000-2009, and the New York Times called him “the nation’s most prominent bond investor”.

Here are some facts about Bill Gross.

• Gross co-founded PIMCO in 1971 with Bill Podlich and Jim Muzzy, launching the company with $12 million in assets

• Gross spent time in Las Vegas playing blackjack professionally after graduating and said he applies many of his gambling techniques on spreading risks and calculating odds in his investment decisions

• He has published two books, “Everything You’ve Heard About Investing is Wrong” in 1997 and “Bill Gross on Investing” in 1998

• Gross earned his undergraduate degree in Psychology from Duke University and holds an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management

• Gross donated $23.5 million to Duke in 2005, of which $20 million was reserved for financial aid purposes

• Gross was the 170th richest American in the Forbes 400 Richest Americans list in 2010

• He is an avid stamp collector, only one of three people to form a complete collection of U.S. postage stamps