During a gala celebration to honor his most loyal financial supporters, Barack Obama made public the amount of money raised by his campaign. The result of their campaign-related efforts was record-breaking: nearly $1 billion.

The sum includes already recorded and estimated fundraising for his campaign, national convention, transition and upcoming inauguration. The total sum raised by Obama’s campaign set a very high bar for the upcoming presidential candidates and also sets a new winning formula for a White House candidate.

According to a report filed Thursday with the Federal Election Commission, Obama gathered nearly $750 million for his presidential campaign. The U.S. President Elect said that, despite spending furiously as his campaign was near the end, as of November 24 he still had approximately $30 million in the bank. Obama spent for his presidential campaign four times more than his rival, Republican Arizona Senator John McCain, did.

From Oct. 16 to Nov. 24, the period covered in the Federal Election Commission report, Obama spent more than $136 million, significantly more compared to Senator McCain’s $26.5 million. McCain remained with $4 million in the bank after the campaign ended and had $4.9 million in debt.

Obama also helped raise more than $100 million for a joint fund he had with the Democratic National Committee.

The huge sums of money Obama received proved decisive in the battle for the White House. The Democrat Illinois Senator used the money wisely investing in old school techniques as well as an Internet-based operation.