Bill Gross and his $747 billion PIMCO empire is becoming much more than a bond investor, though its flagship Total Return Fund was up 4.7% last year.

Its huge cash pile allows PIMCO to buy entire bond portfolios from struggling hedge funds at firesale prices. The group runs the Federal Reserve's $251 billion commercial paper program, which makes short-term loans to corporate America. It is also one of four asset managers picked to run the governments $500 billion program to buy mortgages.

According to Gross, "We efficiently allocate capital around the U.S. and the world. We are in the business of capitalism."

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