CONTINUITY PLAN
This is the Business Continuity Plan (“BCP”) for Longbow Securities, LLC (the “firm”)
I. EMERGENCY CONTACT PERSONS
Our firm’s two emergency contact persons are:
Shelly Shuster
Email: shuster@longbowresearch.com
Primary Phone: (216) 328-5058
Primary Fax: (216) 803-6009
Alternate Email: N/A
Alternate Phone: (330) 338-2696
David S. MacGregor
Email: dmacgregor@longbowresearch.com
Primary Phone: (216) 328-5075
Primary Fax: (216) 803-6009
Alternate Email: N/A
Alternate Phone: (216) 258-1140
The firm will provide FINRA with the contact information for the emergency contact persons through the FINRA Contact System (FCS). David S. MacGregor will promptly notify FINRA of any change in this information
through FCS (but no later than 30 days following the change) and will review, and if necessary update, this information within 17 business days after the end of each calendar year.
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(f); NASD Rule 1160.
II. FIRM POLICY
Our firm’s policy is to respond to a Significant Business Disruption (SBD) by safeguarding employees’ lives and firm property, making a financial and operational assessment, quickly recovering and resuming operations,
protecting all of the firm’s books and records, and allowing our customers to transact business. In the event that we determine we are unable to continue our business, we will assure customers prompt access to their funds
and securities.
A. Significant Business Disruptions (SBDs)
Our plan anticipates two kinds of SBDs, internal and external. Internal SBDs affect only our firm’s ability to communicate and do business, such as a fire in our building. External SBDs prevent the operation of the securities
markets or a number of firms, such as a terrorist attack, a city flood, or a wide-scale, regional disruption. Our response to an external SBD relies more heavily on other organizations and systems, especially on the capabilities
of our clearing firm.
B. Approval and Execution Authority
David S. MacGregor, CFA, CCO, AMLCO and a registered principal, is responsible for approving the plan and for conducting the required annual review. Mr. MacGregor has the authority to execute this BCP.
C. Plan Location and Access
Our firm will maintain copies of its BCP plan and the annual reviews, and the changes that have been made to it for inspection. An electronic copy of our plan is located on our systems.
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(b), (d) and (e).
III. BUSINESS DESCRIPTION
Longbow does not accept customer funds or securities and does not make any markets. Longbow Securities, LLC is engaged in the following types of business:
Investment Research
IV. OFFICE LOCATIONS
A. Main Office #1
Our Main Office is located at 6050 Oaktree Blvd., 3rd Floor, Independence, OH 44131. Its main telephone number is (216) 986-0700. Our employees may travel to that office by means of foot, car, and bus.
V. ALTERNATIVE PHYSICAL LOCATION(S) OF EMPLOYEES
In the event of an SBD, we will move our staff from affected office(s) to the closest of our unaffected office location(s). If our office is not available to receive staff, they will work from home until we have remedied the situation. Our telephone number will remain unchanged.
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(6).
VI. DATA BACK-UP AND RECOVERY (HARD COPY AND ELECTRONIC)
Our firm maintains its primary hard copy books and records and its electronic records at 6050 Oaktree Blvd., 3rd Floor, Independence, OH 44131. David S. MacGregor, CFA (216) 328-5075 is responsible for the maintenance of these books and records. Our firm maintains the following document types and forms:
Corporate Financial Records
Correspondence – both written and electronic
Marketing Materials
Engagement Letters and other contractual obligations
Subscription Agreements
Our firm maintains its back-up hard copy books and records at the Firm’s main office. These records consist of the firm’s internal accounting records, subscription agreements and paper copies. David S. MacGregor, CFA (216) 328-5075 is responsible for the maintenance of these back-up books and records. These records are also maintained as backups in a cloud-based repository and are accessible from any remote location with reliable internet access. For the loss of electronic records maintained at the Firm’s main office, we well physically recover the hard copy data from our primary site.
In the event of an internal or external SBD that causes the loss of our paper records, we will physically recover them from our back-up site. If our primary site is inoperable, we will continue operations from an alternate location. For the loss of electronic records, we will either physically recover the storage media or electronically recover data from our back-up site, or, if our primary site is inoperable, continue operations from our back-up site or an alternate location.
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(1).
VII. FINANCIAL AND OPERATIONAL ASSESSMENTS
A. Operational Risk
In the event of an SBD, we will immediately identify what means will permit us to communicate with our 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 we will employ will include our Web site, telephone voice mail, secure e-mail, etc.. In addition, we will retrieve our key activity records as described in the section above, Data Back-Up and Recovery (Hard Copy and Electronic).
Rules: FINRA Rules 4370(c)(3),(c)(4), (c)(5), (c)(7), (c)(9 & (g)(2)).
B. Financial and Credit Risk
In the event of an SBD, we will determine the value and liquidity of our investments and other assets to evaluate our ability to continue to fund our operations and remain in capital compliance. We will contact our critical banks, and investors to apprise them of our financial status. If we determine that we may be unable to meet our obligations to those counter-parties or otherwise continue to fund our operations, we will request additional financing from our bank or other credit sources to fulfill our obligations to our customers and clients. If we cannot remedy a capital deficiency, we will file appropriate notices with our regulators and immediately take
appropriate steps to meet our net capital requirement.
Rules: FINRA Rules 4370(c)(3), (c)(8) & (g)(2).
VIII. ALTERNATE COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN THE FIRM AND CUSTOMERS, EMPLOYEES, AND REGULATORS
A. Customers
We now communicate with our customers using the telephone, e-mail, our Web site, fax, U.S. mail, and in person visits at our firm or at another location. In the event of an SBD, we will assess which means of communication are still available to us, and use the means closest in speed and form (written or oral) to the means that we have used in the past to communicate with the other party. For example, if we have communicated with a party by e-mail but the Internet is unavailable, we will call them on the telephone and follow up where a record is needed with paper copy in the U.S. mail.
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(4).
B. Employees
We now communicate with our employees using the telephone, e-mail, and in person. In the event of an SBD, we will assess which means of communication are still available to us, and use the means closest in speed and
form (written or oral) to the means that we have used in the past to communicate with the other party. We will also employ a call tree so that senior management can reach all employees quickly during an SBD. The call tree
includes all staff home and office phone numbers. We have identified persons, who live near each other and may reach each other in person:
The person to invoke use of the call tree is: David S. MacGregor, CFA
Caller: David S. MacGregor, CFA
Call Recipients: All registered and non-registered representatives
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(5).
C. Regulators
We are currently members of the following SROs: FINRA. We communicate with our regulators using the telephone, e-mail, fax, U.S. mail, and in person. In the event of an SBD, we will assess which means of
communication are still available to us, and use the means closest in speed and form (written or oral) to the means that we have used in the past to communicate with the other party.
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(9).
IX. CRITICAL BUSINESS CONSTITUENTS, BANKS, AND COUNTER-PARTIES
A. Business constituents
We have contacted our critical business constituents (businesses with which we have an ongoing commercial relationship in support of our operating activities, such as vendors providing us critical services), and determined
the extent to which we can continue our business relationship with them in light of the internal or external SBD. We will quickly establish alternative arrangements if a business constituent can no longer provide the needed
goods or services when we need them because of a SBD to them or our firm.
Rules: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(7).
B. Banks
We have contacted our banks and lenders to determine if they can continue to provide the financing that we will need in light of the internal or external SBD. The bank maintaining our operating account is: CIBC 200 Public
Square, Suite 2050, Cleveland, OH 44114 | Tel: 216-456-2987. If our banks and other lenders are unable to provide the financing, we will seek alternative financing immediately from its owners.
Rules: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(7).
C. Counter-Parties
We have contacted our critical counter-parties, such as other broker-dealers or institutional customers, to determine if we will be able to carry out our transactions with them in light of the internal or external SBD.
Rules: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(7).
X. REGULATORY REPORTING
Our firm is subject to regulation by SEC, FINRA, and state regulatory agencies in those jurisdictions where the Firm is registered. We now file reports with our regulators using paper copies in the U.S. mail, and electronically
using fax, e-mail, and the Internet. In the event of an SBD, we will check with the SEC, FINRA, and other regulators to determine which means of filing are still available to us, and use the means closest in speed and form
(written or oral) to our previous filing method. In the event that we cannot contact our regulators, we will continue to file required reports using the communication means available to us.
SEC - Chicago Regional Office
175 W. Jackson Blvd., Suite 900
Chicago, IL 60604
(312) 353-7390
e-mail: chicago@sec.gov
FINRA District #8 – Chicago
FINRA Liaison Officer
55 West Monroe Street, Suite 2700
Chicago, IL 60603-5052
(312) 899-4400
Fax: (312) 606-0742
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(c)(8).
XI. BCP DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
The firm has created a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) that provides for the firm to continue client service within a reasonable amount of time, given the scope and severity of a significant business disruption. (SBD).
The BCP anticipates responding to both internal and external SBDs. An internal SBD, such as the loss of our telephone system, affects only the firm. The firm will respond to internal SBDs by rerouting calls to secondary numbers, and/or relocating its primary office to a secondary location, and/or, recovering data from a backup storage media and/or a backup site. The firm expects to recover from an internal SBD within one hour.
An external SBD, such as a power outage or flood, affects multiple businesses and can be local, regional, national, or global. The firm’s response to an external SBD relies more heavily on other organizations, such as vendors and product sponsors. The firm expects to recover from an external SBD within six hours.
In the event a SBD prevents customers from contacting the firm by using the firm’s primary phone number, fax number, or email address, customers may contact the firm by using the following secondary contact information:
Telephone: 216-986-0700 216-258-1140
While no contingency plan can eliminate all risk of service interruption or temporarily impeded account access, the firm continually assesses and updates its BCP to mitigate all reasonable risk.
This disclosure is subject to modification.
XII. UPDATES AND ANNUAL REVIEW
Our firm will update this plan whenever we have a material change to our operations, structure, business or location. In addition, our firm will review this BCP annually, on December 1st, to modify it for any changes in our operations, structure, business, or location.
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(b).
XIII. 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 an SBD.
Rule: FINRA Rule 4370(d).