UPAL has developed a Business Continuity Plan on how we will respond to events that significantly disrupt our business. Since the timing and impact of disasters and disruptions is unpredictable, we will have to be flexible in responding to actual events as they occur. With that in mind, we are providing you with this information on our business continuity plan.
Contacting Us – If after a significant business disruption, you cannot contact us as you usually do at (918) 747-5585, you should call our alternative number Lea Ann Nunley (918) 237-9945 or go to our website at www.upal.com. If you cannot access us through any of these means, you should contact our clearing firm, Charles Schwab at 800-515-2157 and https://client.schwab.com/Login/SignOn/CustomerCenterLogin.aspx or BOKF, N.A., at (800) 876-9557 for instructions on how they may assist you in gaining prompt access to funds and securities, enter orders and process other trade-related, cash and security transfer transactions.
Our Business Continuity Plan – UPAL plans to quickly recover and resume business operations after a significant business disruption and respond by safeguarding our employees and property, making a financial and operational assessment, protecting the firm’s books and records, and allowing our customers to transact business. In short, our business continuity plan is designed to permit UPAL to resume operations as quickly as possible, given the scope and severity of the significant business disruption.
Our business continuity plan addresses: data backup and recovery; all mission critical systems; financial and operational assessments; alternative communications with customers, employees, and regulators; alternate physical location of employees; critical supplier, contractor, bank and counter-party impact; regulatory reporting; and assuring our customers prompt access to their funds and securities if we are unable to continue our business.
Our clearing firms, Charles Schwab and BOKF, N.A., back up our important records in a geographically separate area. While every emergency situation poses unique problems based on external factors, such as time of day and the severity of the disruption, we have been advised by our clearing firms that their objective is to restore operations and be able to complete existing transactions and accept new transactions and payments by the next business day. Your orders and requests for funds and securities could be delayed during this period.
Varying Disruptions – Significant business disruptions can vary in their scope, such as only UPAL, a single building housing UPAL, the business district where UPAL is located, the city where we are located, or the whole region. Within each of these areas, the severity of the disruption can also vary from minimal to severe. In a disruption to only UPAL or a building housing UPAL, we will transfer our operations to home based and expect to recover and resume business within a 24 hour or next business day time frame. In a disruption affecting our business district, city, or region, we will coordinate with Charles Schwab or BOKF, N.A. to resume operations from one of their sites located outside of the affected area and recover and resume business within a 24 hour or next business day time frame. In either situation, we plan to continue in business, transfer operations to our clearing firm if necessary, and notify you through our website www.upal.com or our customer emergency number, Lea Ann Nunley (918) 237-9945, on how to contact us. If the significant business disruption is so severe that it prevents us from remaining in business, we will do our best to provide you with prompt access to your funds and securities.
For more information – If you have questions about our business continuity planning, you can contact us at (918) 747-5585.