Marlynn Ma

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Marlynn Ma is a Managing Director and Wealth Management Advisor with Merrill in Pasadena, California. Marlynn provides in-depth advice and guidance to individuals, families, and businesses, helping them implement a more strategic and thoughtful approach to their finances. A financial advisor since 2002, she offers the knowledge and insight to tackle sophisticated needs, particularly those of wealth creators, entrepreneurs, privately-owned businesses, and multiple generations of client families. Fluent in Mandarin, Marlynn has particular depth serving the Asian American community, helping them capitalize on the opportunities at their disposal to preserve, grow, and transfer wealth more effectively.

A veteran of the industry, Marlynn has garnered a number of national accolades for work as an Advisor.


Forbes “Best-in-State Wealth Advisors” Multi-Year lists: 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023
Published annually Jan – April. Rankings based on data as of June 30 of prior year.


Forbes “America’s Top Women Wealth Advisors” Multi-Year lists: 2020 and 2021
Published annually Feb – April. Rankings based on data as of June 30–September 30 of prior year.


Working Mother/SHOOK Research’s “Top Wealth Advisor Moms” Multi-Year lists: 2019, 2020 and 2021
Published annually Sept – Oct. Rankings based on data as of Mar 31 of current year.


Financial Times "401 Top Retirement Advisers" Multi-Year lists: 2018, 2019 and 2020
Published annually May - Oct. Rankings based on data as of Dec 31 of prior year.*

Marlynn feels that clients look to for her steady effort, sustained leadership, and seasoned perspective. She is adept in unwinding the intersection of a client’s personal and professional wealth, offering a tax-sensitive approach that is bolstered by active collaboration with a client’s external tax and legal advisors, as appropriate. Undaunted by the complexities that significant wealth can entail, Marlynn is well versed in business optimization, pre- and post-transaction planning, tailored portfolio management, trust and estate planning services, custom lending, and philanthropic services.  

Concurrent with this role, Marlynn also oversees retirement benefit assets for corporate clients, including 401(k), profit sharing, defined benefit, and deferred compensation plans. She and her team work closely with plan sponsors and administrators to enhance participant education, increase plan participation, and compete more effectively for employee talent. She also supports business owners in pursuing their fiduciary duties and by providing access to services that help with minimizing fiduciary liability in their retirement-plan management.

Marlynn has worked in wealth management since 2002 and joined Merrill in 2009. Prior to her work in wealth management, she graduated from medical school in China and worked in the Bengbu Medical School Hospital for 6 years. Dedicated to professional excellence, Marlynn has attained a number of industry designations. She holds the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^™ certification awarded by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. CFP^®, the Certified Exit Planning Advisor, CEPA^® designation, the Certified Plan Fiduciary Advisor, CPFA^® designation, the Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor, CRPC^TM designation, the Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist, CRPS^TM designation, and the Certified 401(k) Professional^®, C(k)P^® designation.
 
Married with two sons, Marlynn enjoys spending time with her family and her beloved Labradoodle, Kiki. She and her family also enjoy traveling to new destinations.

For our team website, please click here.

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Merrill, its affiliates, and financial advisors do not provide legal, tax, or accounting advice. You should consult your legal and/or tax advisors before making any financial decisions.

*Source: The Forbes “America’s Top Women Wealth Advisors” list, published annually Feb - April. Rankings based on data as of June 30 - September 30 of prior year.

Data provided by SHOOK^® Research, LLC. Forbes.com America’s Top Women Advisors ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person, virtual and telephone due diligence meetings to evaluate each advisor qualitatively, a major component of a ranking algorithm that includes: client impact, industry experience, review of best practices and compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. SHOOK’s research and rankings provide opinions intended to help investors choose the right financial advisor and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client’s experience. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receive compensation in exchange for placement on the ranking. For more information, please see www.SHOOKresearch.com. SHOOK is a registered trademark of SHOOK Research, LLC

*Source: The Forbes “Best-in-State Wealth Advisors” list, published annually Jan - April. Rankings based on data as of June 30 of prior year.

Data provided by SHOOK^® Research, LLC. Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisors ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person, virtual, and telephone due diligence meetings to measure best practices; also considered are: client retention, industry experience, credentials, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, such as: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. SHOOK’s research and rankings provide opinions intended to help investors choose the right financial advisor and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client’s experience. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receive compensation in exchange for placement on the ranking. For more information, please see www.SHOOKresearch.com. SHOOK is a registered trademark of SHOOK Research, LLC.
*Source: Working Mother/SHOOK Research’s “Top Wealth Advisor Moms” list, published annually Sept - Oct. Rankings based on data as of Mar 31 of current year.

Data provided by SHOOK^® Research, LLC. SHOOK Research considered women advisors with children living at home under 21 years of age. The ranking algorithm is based on qualitative measures derived from telephone and in-person interviews and surveys: service models, investing process, client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations, etc.; and quantitative criteria, such as assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. Rankings are based on the opinions of SHOOK Research, LLC and not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client’s experience. Rankings and recognition from Working Mother/SHOOK Research are no guarantee of future investment success and do not ensure that a current or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance results, and such rankings should not be construed as an endorsement of the advisor. Neither SHOOK nor Working Mother receives compensation from the advisors or their firms in exchange for placement on a ranking. SHOOK Research is a trademark of SHOOK Research, LLC. All rights reserved.

*Source: Financial Times “401 Top Retirement Advisers” list, published annually May - Oct. Rankings based on data as of Dec 31 of prior year.

The Financial Times “401 Top Retirement Advisers” list is an independent listing produced annually by the Financial Times. The FT 401 is based on data gathered from advisers, regulatory disclosures, and the FT’s research. The listing reflects each adviser’s status in six primary areas: DC plan assets under management, DC plan growth rate, specialization in DC plans, years of experience, advanced industry credentials, and compliance record. This honor is not indicative of the adviser’s future performance. Rankings and recognition from the Financial Times are no guarantee of future investment success and do not ensure that a current or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance results, and such rankings should not be construed as an endorsement of the adviser. Neither the advisers nor their parent firms pay a fee to the Financial Times in exchange for inclusion in the FT 401. All rights reserved.