Buffett, the Berkshire Hathaway chairman, and Alan Greenspan, the former Federal Reserve chairman, sing his praises.Īmid all of this, Mr. Treasury secretaries call him for advice. His frequent appearances on CNBC draw buzz, as do his wickedly humorous monthly investing columns on the Pimco Web site. Gross has emerged as one of the nation’s most influential financiers. He knows he has to be well dressed for client meetings or television but instead of keeping his Hermès ties neatly knotted, he drapes them around his neck like scarves so he can labor with his collar open.Īnd with the collapse of Wall Street, Mr. Many of his most inspired ideas arrived while he was standing on his head doing yoga. He learned some of his lucrative investing strategies by gambling in Las Vegas. Gross, 65, has long been celebrated for his eccentricities. He wants everyone disconnected from the outside world and focused on what matters most to him: mining riches for his clients at Pimco, the swiftly growing money management firm.

The blinds are drawn to keep out the sunshine, and he forbids any fiddling with BlackBerrys or cellphones. Every day, Bill Gross, the world’s most successful bond fund manager, withdraws into a conference room at lunchtime with his lieutenants to discuss his firm’s investments.

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