Business Continuity Plans and Emergency Contact Information
Member firms must create and maintain a written business continuity plan identifying procedures to keep the business running in the event of an emergency or significant business disruption. It must be designed to enable the broker-dealer to meet its existing obligations to customers and to other counterparties. A business continuity plan must be kept readily available for delivery to FINRA promptly upon request.
The elements that comprise a business continuity plan may be tailored to the size and needs of the firm. However, each plan must address at a minimum:
- • Data back-up and recovery (hard copy and electronic)
- • All mission-critical systems
- • Financial and operational assessments
- • Alternate communications between customers and the member
- • Alternate communications between the member and its employees
- • Alternate physical location of employees
- • Critical business constituent, bank, and counterparty impact
- • Regulatory reporting
- • Communications with regulators
- • Prompt access by its customers to their funds and securities should the firm become unable to continue its operation
If some of these categories are not applicable to the