The old cliche, “Money makes money,” is quite factual when it comes to billionaire business magnate, Bill Gates. The man just keeps getting richer with time.

Topping the Forbes’ 400 list for the 20th consecutive year, Gates has been deemed the wealthiest man in America yet again. While everyone commonly accredits Gates’ accumulation of wealth to the ever-successful Microsoft Corporation, that’s actually not where the vast majority of his revenue was acquired.

Forbes explained in a rather enlightening report that only a fifth of Gates’ astronomical fortune was acquired through profits he’s garnered from Microsoft. According to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, that ‘fifth’ is actually equivalent to approximately 4.8% in ownership of the massive software conglomerate. Then, in addition profits from that 4.8%, Gates’ may have actually come out with a little more than that fifth, as the calculations may have been slightly obscure due to a minute surge in the cost of Microsoft shares last August. With the resignation of Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer, the company’s stock elevated to over $36.00 a share before dropping to a consistency of about $32.00 a share.

According to Yahoo Finance, Cascade, which is Gates’ investment conglomerate, is actually the dominant force behind his empire. Cascade holds approximately 65% of Gates’ assets, due to the success of companies such as Berkshire Hathaway, Canadian National Railway, tractor manufacturing company John Deere, and Coca Cola’s brewing and bottling subsidiary, FESMA.

With the successful accumulation of assets outside of Microsoft, Gates was approximately $9.8 billion richer at the top of 2013 than the year before, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index. Gates’ mind-blowing financial portfolio justifies exactly how he can afford to charitably bestow almost $29 billion over a five-year span. Bill Gates’ empire definitely serves as a prime example of a ‘gift that keeps on giving,’ as he grows richer and richer.

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