GP Bullhound Inc. Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plan

Transcription

1 GP Bullhound Inc. Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plan This Business Continuity Plan was reviewed, updated and approved as of 17 August Introduction Planning for business continuity and recovery in the aftermath of a disaster is important in order to ensure that the firm will be able to recover enough to continue the business of the firm and meet the existing obligations to its customers. Response to and recovery from a disaster requires the cooperative efforts of all employees and Associated Persons of the firm. GP Bullhound s policy is to respond to a Significant Business Disruption (SBD) by safeguarding employees lives and the firm s property, making a financial and operational assessment, quickly recovering and resuming operations, protecting all of the firm s books and records and continuing to serve our clients. This plan anticipates two kinds of significant business disruptions: internal and external. Internal disruptions affect only the firm s ability to communicate and conduct business, such as a fire in the building. External disruptions prevent the operation of securities markets or a number of firms, such as a terrorist attack, an earthquake, a city flood, or a wide-scale, regional disruption. The firm operates from one office at One Maritime Plaza, Suite 1620, San Francisco, California, 94111, which can be reached by foot, personal automobile, bike, mass transportation (train and bus), and taxi. The Business Continuity Plan is developed based on the size and needs of the firm, but will address, at a minimum, each of the following areas: Person Responsible for the Business Continuity Plan; Data back-up and recovery (hard copy and electronic); Mission critical systems; Page 1 of 11

2 Financial and operational assessments; Alternate communications between clients and the member; Alternate communications between the member and its employees; Alternate physical location of employees; Critical business constituents, banks and counter-parties; Regulatory reporting; and Communications with regulators A copy of this Business Continuity Plan will be maintained in a file in the home office, digitally in an online storage location and offsite. The off-site storage location is the home of the CEO, Principal and Chief Compliance Officer (Alec Dafferner) located at 3390 Las Huertas Road, Lafayette, CA Business Description GP Bullhound conducts business in the following securities types: private placements of securities and merger & acquisition advisory services. GP Bullhound does not hold customer accounts, accept customer funds or safekeep customer securities. Person Responsible Alec Dafferner is responsible for establishing the plan, reviewing the plan on an annual basis, updating the plan annually (or as changes occur), approving the plan in writing, and educating the firm s employees regarding the business continuity and disaster recovery procedures of the firm. Emergency Contact Persons GP Bullhound s emergency contact persons are: (1) Alec Dafferner: cell (415) , office (415) , alec.dafferner@gpbullhound.com or alecdafferner@yahoo.com; and (2) Graeme Bayley: cell (+44) , office (+44) , graeme.bayley@gpbullhound.com or graeme.bayley@gmail.com. This information will be promptly updated in the event of a material change, including changes to the designation of the two emergency contact Page 2 of 11

3 persons, via FINRA s Contact System (FCS). GP Bullhound s Executive Representative (Alec Dafferner) or designee will review and update, when necessary, the emergency contact information on an annual basis (by the 17 th business day following the close of the calendar year). Data Back-up and Recovery (hard copy and electronic) GP Bullhound maintains its primary hard copy books and records at the home office of the broker/dealer located at One Maritime Plaza, Suite 1620, San Francisco, CA This company data includes customer records, associated person files, corporate documents, research, due diligence and financial data. Not only is the data stored physically at the home office, this data is also stored electronically and backed up at Egnyte Data Centre EU, Equinix, Luttenbergweg 4, 1101 EC Amsterdam, The Netherlands and accessible via a VPN and an Internet connection. In order to have an effective business continuity plan, the firm will maintain, at its home office and backed up at the alternate location, the following information: Copy of the Business Continuity Plan Copies of corporate documents (operating agreement, tax forms, corporate resolutions, etc.) A supply of blank checks (stored at the home office and at the alternate business location in San Francisco area) Copies of marketing materials, if any Employee list with home addresses, addresses and phone numbers (include any home number, cell number, pager number, emergency contact number) Vendor list with contact names and phone numbers List of necessary FINRA personnel and contact information at the district and national level SEC contact number and addresses (regional and national) Insurance Contact List Bank Contact Information In addition to the points above, each laptop is backed up daily via Online Backup tool to the London Data Centre, protecting laptops from potential Page 3 of 11

4 data loss in the event of theft/loss. Each laptop connects directly to data stored in the Egnyte cloud via the Internet, this data is housed in there Amsterdam data centre and we have a local cached copy of the data available in the primary business location, One Maritime Plaza. Should the internet or Egnyte do down the local cache would be accessed to ensure business operations continue, changes would then sync back to the Egnyte Cloud once service was restored We also have the ability to create Mobile Hotspots via our Mobile phones with which we can create a secure data connection to the company network from almost any location. Mission Critical Systems Mission critical systems are those used by the firm to ensure prompt and accurate processing of securities transactions. Due to the firm s limited securities business, no clearing firm relationship exists, nor does the firm utilize a back office system for record keeping and order processing. GP Bullhound conducts all business in the same manner: private placement transactions are marketed only to institutional investors who wire money directly to GP Bullhound s clients accounts (or their law firm who subsequently wires the funds to their client), in exchange for new or existing equity or similar interests in the company. The responsible person at GP Bullhound (Alec Dafferner) has the primary responsibility for establishing and maintaining business relationships with customers and has the sole responsibility for the mission critical systems of the broker/dealer. Financial and Operational Assessments The firm utilizes the QuickBooks accounting software package which is run from an offsite location. The firm can also access financial data through the back-ups stored off-site. Operational Risk Page 4 of 11

5 In the event of an SBD, GP Bullhound will immediately identify through what means the firm can communicate with customers, employees, critical business constituents, critical banks, critical counter-parties, and regulators. Although the effects of an SBD will determine the means of alternative communication, the communications options the firm will employ will include one or more of the following: the firm s web site, telephone voice mail, and . In addition, the firm will retrieve key activity records as described in the section entitled Data Back-Up and Recovery. Financial Risk In the event of a significant business disruption, the firm will determine the value and liquidity of its investments and assets and decide whether or not it is able to remain in compliance with net capital requirements. If the firm determines that it may not be able to meet its obligations, additional financing will be obtained. If unable to maintain capital sufficiency, the firm will file appropriate notices with regulators and immediately take the steps that are outlined in SEC Rule 17a-11. This would include giving notice of deficiency that same day to the principal office of the Commission in Washington, D.C., the regional or district office of the Commission, and FINRA. This notice shall be given by . Alternate Communications between Customers and the Member This Plan is designed to provide a consistent communication framework to plan for and/or respond to any crisis situation that may disrupt the firm s operations. Its purpose is to support the response to any crisis that may occur by providing timely, accurate information to customers. In the event of a significant business disruption that disables telephone service or forces employees out of the primary location, GP Bullhound will remotely forward office phones to the alternative location. By doing so, customers can reach GP Bullhound employees by dialing the existing office telephone number. GP Bullhound communicates with customers via telephone, US mail, in person visits and . The firm will maintain customer contact phone Page 5 of 11

6 numbers and addresses. Customer information can be accessed remotely; therefore, if telephone service is available, the firm can communicate verbally with customers in the event of a significant business disruption. In the event of a disruption, the firm will determine which means of communication are still available and use the means closest in speed and form (written or oral) to the means used in the past to communicate with customers. For example, if the firm has communicated with a party by e- mail but Internet access is unavailable, the customer will be called on the telephone. If the firm has customer addresses, an will be sent to each client that may have pending securities business with the firm. This will give customers the opportunity to contact the firm, even if phone service is interrupted. Each Associated Person has a mobile phone, virtual landline phone and Internet/ capabilities away from the office. This will allow customers to contact Registered Representatives away from the office, if necessary. We also have the ability to divert the Land Lines to our mobile phones in the event of an incident. Any disruption to the firm s service will also be posted on the firm s webpage (included within the parent company s website thus giving customer s detailed information regarding the emergency situation and how to contact someone associated with the firm. The webpage is also a good forum for communicating further emergency instructions to GP Bullhound employees or any other persons or organizations trying to contact the broker/dealer. GP Bullhound s Business Continuity Plan Disclosure Statement also includes the language that customers may access firm information during an emergency situation/sbd by accessing the firm s webpage. Alternate Communications between the Member and its Employees This Plan is designed to provide a consistent communication framework to plan for and/or respond to any crisis situation that may disrupt the firm s Page 6 of 11

7 operations. Its purpose is to support the response to any crisis that may occur by providing timely, accurate information to its employees. Should it be necessary to contact employees, senior managers will use the fastest, most efficient means available at the time. Communication may consist of telephone, , website, or in person. In the event of an SBD, we will assess which means of communication are available for use and will employ the form of communication that will be the quickest, most effective way to reach that employee. The firm will maintain a list of employee names, addresses and all contact phone numbers and addresses. This list will be maintained at the home office and stored electronically at the off-site storage location and at the homes of the principals of the firm. This allows the firm to have verbal contact with any employees and associated persons in the event of a significant business disruption. The web site is also a good forum for communicating further emergency instructions to the firm s employees and associated persons. To aid in the continuity and recovery process, each employee will have available a list of important phone numbers, and access to hosted s. Employees have access to both Outlook Web Access & Mimecast Business continuity platform, this provides access to Business , they can also access Business Data via Secure VPN to the London Data Centre. Should there be a significant business disruption at the home office, employees will be instructed to work from home. Primary home location for the conduct of broker/dealer activities in the event of an SBD is 3373 Las Huertas Road, Lafayette, CA (the home of Alec Dafferner, the CEO, Principal and Chief Compliance Officer of the firm). Regulatory Reporting GP Bullhound is regulated by FINRA, the SEC, and the California Securities Regulation Division, along with additional states. Reports are currently filed electronically. In the event of a SBD, the firm will contact regulatory authorities and determine what methods of reporting are available. If the firm cannot contact authorities, regulatory reports, such as FOCUS reports, will be filed by the speediest method available that is closest in form to the Page 7 of 11

8 previous filing method. If the Internet is not available, the firm will file reports via overnight delivery service or US mail. Communications with Regulators The firm will maintain a list of assigned examiners and other contacts with the NASD and the SEC on the district and national level, and the California Department of Securities, including addresses, phone numbers and, if available, addresses. This will allow the firm to communicate with regulators in the event of a significant business disruption. Communication with regulators may be through the telephone, , US mail and overnight delivery services. The firm is located in San Francisco, CA, which is where the FINRA district office is located. If necessary, the principals of the firm can access their FINRA district personnel and SEC district personnel in person. FINRA District Office District Pine Street, Suite 1800 San Francisco, CA (415) FINRA National Office- Washington, DC 1735 K Street, NW Washington, DC (202) (301) FINRA National Office- Rockville, MD 9509 Key West Avenue Rockville, MD (301) SEC District Office San Francisco Dstrict Office Jina Choi, Regional Director Page 8 of 11

9 44 Montgomery Street, Suite 2600 San Francisco, CA (415) SEC Washington, DC SEC Headquarters Office of Investor Education and Advocacy 100 F Street, NE Washington, DC (800) help@sec.gov California Department of Corporations Securities Regulation Division 1515 K Street, Suite 200 Sacramento, CA Preston DuFauchard (916) California is the home state of GP Bullhound; however, the firm may also register in other jurisdictions. State contact information (address, phone numbers, website and address) may be found at Critical Business Constituents, Banks and Counter-Parties Critical Business Constituents Critical business constituents (business with which we have an ongoing commercial relationship in support of our operating activities, such as vendors providing us critical services, issuers or product sponsors) will be contacted and we will determin the extent to which we can continue our business relationship with them in light of the internal or external SBD. We will Page 9 of 11

10 quickly establish alternative arrangements if a critical business constituent can no longer provide the needed goods or services when we need them due to a SBD (either theirs or ours). Banks The firm maintains its bank accounts with Bank of America, 315 Montgomery St 14th Fl San Francisco, CA and the contact with the bank is Haseeb Chaudhry and can be reached on (415) GP Bullhound s bank records, including deposits, withdrawals and bank statements, can be accessed from any Bank of America location, or through the bank s on-line banking services. The firm utilizes the QuickBooks accounting software package. Financial data can be accessed from the back-ups stored off-site. Counter-Parties If necessary, GP Bullhound will contract with critical counter-parties to determine if transactions will be carried out in light of an internal or external SBD. Where the transactions cannot be completed, GP Bullhound will work with or contact those counter-parties directly to make alternative arrangements to complete those transactions as soon as possible. Review, Maintenance and Updating of the Business Continuity Plan Ensuring that the Business Continuity Plan reflects ongoing changes is crucial to the successful implementation of the plan. This task includes reviewing the Plan and revising it to reflect updates, testing the updated Plan (if necessary) and training employees and Associated Persons to the updates. Maintenance of this plan is the responsibility of Alec Dafferner. Changes will be made as they occur and the firm will review the full Business Continuity Plan on an annual basis. Disclosure of Business Continuity Plan GP Bullhound Inc. provides a written BCP disclosure statement to clients through our website and upon request. Page 10 of 11

11 Senior Manager Approval I have approved this Business Continuity Plan as reasonably designed to enable our firm to meet its obligations to customers in the event of a Significant Business Disruption. Signed: Title: CEO, Principal and Chief Compliance Officer Date: Page 11 of 11