Bill Gross: ‘We Were Looking for Every Penny We Could Get’
The ‘bond king’ on blackjack, building an investment powerhouse — and his Asperger’s diagnosis
By Robin Wigglesworth
Bill Gross has not enjoyed the kind of career twilight for which a celebrated billionaire might hope. In fact, it has been downright miserable.
As the founder of Pimco — the biggest and most influential fixed income powerhouse in the world — Gross was a finance industry rock star. At one point the “bond king” managed hundreds of billions of dollars, and his bets could make or break the fate of countries. His anecdote-laden, often outrageous investment letters made him a colourful splash in a monochrome industry.
But after four decades at the helm, Gross was unceremoniously ousted from Pimco in 2014. His magic touch then turned to dust at Janus Henderson, a smaller money manager where he sought refuge before finally retiring last Friday. Adding to the misery, a messy divorce simultaneously made him tabloid fodder.
It is a modest fall from grace compared with some infamous Wall Street flame-outs. The 74-year-old is still vastly wealthy (Forbes puts his fortune at $1.5bn), in good health and now in a happy relationship with Amy Schwartz, a former professional tennis…
