Financial Planning News: “Asian American advisors see unmet potential for industry amid success”
August 25, 2021, Financial Planning News — In today’s issue of Financial Planning, reporter Tobias Salinger writes: Financial advisors Marguerita Cheng and Elijah Souza share two things in common: They’re two of the thousands of Asian American or Pacific Islander wealth management professionals, and both say they didn’t even know their chosen line of work existed when they were growing up.
Souza hadn’t heard of his eventual career until after some older fraternity brothers worked for a large wealth manager after graduation. For Cheng, it took until after her first job in Japan as an analyst. She decided to switch careers by pursuing her CFP certification.
“In college, I didn’t realize that there was a distinct discipline where people could earn a living helping people with personal finance,” says Cheng, the founder of Gaithersburg, Maryland-based Blue Ocean Global Wealth. “I get to use my analytical skills. I also get to connect with people and help people not just realize their goals, but clarify them. I feel really blessed to discover the profession.”