Western Financial Corporation - Business Continuity Plan Financial Retail Brokeraage

Business Continuity Plan

Disaster Recovery and Business Continuation Program

Western Financial Corporation has developed a Business Continuity Plan which describes how we will respond to events that may 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 (619) 234-3235, (619) 234-0196, or (619) 544-0260 you should call our alternative numbers, (619) 813-3341 or (619) 548-0477. You may also contact us by e-mail at rick@westfincorp.com or howard@westfincorp.com. If you cannot access us through any of those means, you should contact our clearing firm, Wedbush Morgan Securities, at (213) 688-4568 or through its website, www.wedbush.com, for instructions on how it may provide prompt access to your funds and securities, permit you to enter orders, and process other trade-related, cash, and security transfer instructions, and, in general, answer questions related to your account.

OUR BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLAN – We plan 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 our firm to resume operations as quickly as possible, given the scope and severity of the significant business disruption.

Our business continuity plan addresses: data back up 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 firm, Wedbush Morgan Securities, backs 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 firm that its objective is to restore its own operations and be able to complete existing transactions and accept new transactions and payments within the same 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 our firm, a single building housing our firm, the business district where our firm 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 our firm or a building housing our firm, we will transfer our operations to a local site when needed and expect to recover and resume business within the same day. In a disruption affecting our business district, city, or region, we will transfer our operations to a site outside of the affected area, and recover and resume business within the same day or shortly thereafter. In either situation, we plan to continue in business, transfer operations to our clearing firm if necessary, and notify you through our customer emergency numbers, (619) 813-3341 or (619) 548-0477, how to contact us. If the significant business disruption is so severe that it prevents us from remaining in business, we will assure our customer’s prompt access to their funds and securities through our clearing firm, Wedbush Morgan Securities.

FOR MORE INFORMATION – If you have questions about our business continuity planning, you may contact us in person at 600 "B" Street, Suite 2204, San Diego, CA 92101, or by telephone at (619) 234-3235, (619) 234-0196, or (619) 544-0260, or by e-mail at rick@westfincorp.com.