Mary Ellen M. Valliant, AIF™, Founder and Managing Partner of Valliant Wealth Strategies and Registered Principal with Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. has more than 35 years of experience with leading financial services and banking firms. Her career began in Washington DC with Paine Webber, now UBS, she served as an institutional trader in the short-term capital markets for a large international banking concern before starting her practice Valliant Wealth Strategies in 1997.

In 2021, Mary Ellen was named to the Forbes’ Top Women Wealth Advisors in the nation and Best-In-State Wealth Advisors for the state of Maryland. Of the top 1000 female wealth advisors nationwide, Valliant ranked number 550th and among all advisors in Maryland, Valliant ranked 11th. Mrs. Valliant is an Accredited Institutional Fiduciary designee, AIF™

She is a named member of the 2021 Raymond James Leaders Council*. This marks the eighth consecutive year that Valliant has qualified for the honor. This prestigious recognition was given to less than three percent of the estimated 7800 advisors within the Raymond James firm. She is a 16-time member of the Executive Council*of Raymond James Financial Services, an honor presented only to those financial advisors who have demonstrated an extremely high level of commitment to clients through personal service and professional integrity.

Throughout her career, she has provided private client investment management and financial planning services to individuals and businesses. Mary Ellen specializes inworking with exiting or transitioning corporate senior executives who seek guidance in the next chapter of their personal and professional lives. She has the experience needed to help executives-in-transition navigate a multitude of financial intricacies for a smooth progression into either a new senior corporate role or into retirement.

Since 1997, she has served on the board of directors of Medical Mutual Liability Insurance Society of Maryland, a leading physician's malpractice insurer serving physicians in Maryland, the District of Columbia and Virginia. Currently, she is Vice Chair of the Board of Directors as well as Chair of the Society's Finance Committee, Member of Executive Committee and Member of the Compensation Committee.

Mary Ellen has served on the board of directors for Centreville National Bank, a subsidiary of Shore United Bank (SHBI), Chester River Hospital Foundation, Adkins Arboretum, as a trustee for the Chesapeake College Foundation and member of the board of managers of the Episcopal Diocese of Easton and board member of the Compass Regional Hospice supporting hospice needs of the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

She is the mother of three adult children, Phillip, Mary Shea and Patrick and a new grandmother to Eleanor Wren Watson. She and her husband Bruce enjoy sailing, cruising, travel and have been Managing Partners of Valliant Wealth Strategies for over 25 years.

*Membership is based on fiscal year production. Re-qualification is required annually since prior membership is no assurance of future membership.

The Forbes ranking of America’s Top 1,000 Women Wealth Advisors, developed by SHOOK Research, is based on an algorithm of qualitative and quantitative data, rating thousands of wealth advisors with a minimum of 7 years of experience and weighing factors like revenue trends, AUM, compliance records, industry experience and best practices learned through telephone and in-person interviews. Portfolio performance is not a criteria due to varying client objectives and lack of audited data. Research Summary (as of February 2021):32,810 nominations were received based on thresholds (9,785 women) and 1,000won. This ranking is not indicative of advisor’s future performance, is not an endorsement, and may not be representative of individual clients’ experience. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK receive a fee in exchange for rankings. Raymond James is not affiliated with Forbes or Shook Research, LLC.  Please visithttps://www.forbes.com/top-women-advisors for more information.

The Forbes ranking of Best-In-State Wealth Advisors, developed by SHOOK Research, is based on an algorithm of qualitative criteria, mostly gained through telephone and in-person due diligence interviews, and quantitative data. Those advisors that are considered have a minimum of seven years’ experience, and the algorithm weights factors like revenue trends, assets under management, compliance records, industry experience and those that encompass best practices in their practices and approach to working with clients. Out of approximately32,725 nominations received, based on thresholds, more than 5,000 advisors received the award. Portfolio performance is not a criteria due to varying client objectives and lack of audited data. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK receives a fee in exchange for rankings. This ranking is not indicative of advisor’s future performance, is not an endorsement, and may not be representative of individual clients’ experience. Neither Raymond James nor any of its Financial Advisors or RIA firms pay a fee in exchange for this award/rating. Raymond James is not affiliated with Forbes or Shook Research, LLC. For more information, visit: https://www.forbes.com/best-in-state-wealth-advisors/.

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