Richards Financial Planning, LLC
A Texas State-Registered Investment Adviser • Houston, Texas
Revised June 16, 2026 — incorporates Succession Plan (Section III) and regulatory-reference corrections
No contingency plan can eliminate all risks of service interruption. Therefore, in creating our Business Continuity Plan (BCP), we make certain assumptions regarding alternative facilities being accessible, sufficient personnel being available, and external organizations — including securities markets and government agencies — being operational. If these assumptions are not valid, we will evaluate options to minimize disruption to our services as events unfold. In addition, we will promptly provide clients with information about how to access their funds and securities. The following is our Business Continuity and Succession Plan.
I. Emergency Contact Persons
The Firm’s emergency contact person is:
Van Richards, Managing Member — 713-320-6124
In the event of a material change, the Managing Member will update the emergency contact within two weeks of the end of the quarter in which the change occurs.
The Firm also maintains a written Succession Plan (see Section III) that designates a successor to act if the Managing Member dies or becomes unable to serve.
II. Firm Policy
Our Firm’s policy is to respond to a Significant Business Disruption (SBD) by safeguarding lives first. Then we will secure firm property. Subsequently, we will make a financial and operational assessment. As soon as is reasonably possible, we will recover and resume operations, protecting all the Firm’s books and records and allowing our customers to transact business. If we determine that we cannot continue our business, we will ensure customers have 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 significant peril to our business location.
External SBDs prevent the operation of the securities markets or many firms, such as those caused by a terrorist attack, a hurricane, or a wide-scale regional disruption. As a result, our response to an external SBD relies more heavily on other organizations and systems, especially on our custodian firm’s capabilities.
B. Approval and Execution Authority
Van Richards, Managing Member, is responsible for approving the plan and conducting an annual review, and has the authority to execute this BCP. Upon the death or incapacity of the Managing Member, the successor designated in the Firm’s written Succession Plan (Section III) has the authority to execute this plan and to conduct the orderly wind-down described there.
C. Plan Location and Access
Our Firm will maintain copies of its BCP, the annual reviews, and the changes made to it for inspection. In addition, two electronic copies of the plan are available: one on an onsite external drive, in a file named “Richards Financial Planning BCP,” and a second on the Microsoft cloud for Richards Financial Planning, labeled “Richards Financial Planning BCP.” The plan is also available on our website at www.RichardsFinancialPlanning.com.
III. Succession Plan — Death or Incapacity of Our Sole Adviser
Richards Financial Planning is a solo advisory practice. Because our ability to provide investment advice depends on our sole adviser, we maintain a written Succession Plan that takes effect if he dies or becomes unable to serve.
In that event, the Firm will not continue providing advisory services. Instead, a designated successor will conduct an orderly wind-down: clients will be promptly notified, the Firm’s authority to trade in client accounts will be suspended, and clients will be free to select a new investment adviser of their choosing.
Your investments are not held by our Firm. For individual accounts, assets are held in your name at our custodian, currently Altruist Corp. If we engage an additional or successor custodian, you will be notified in advance, and this Succession Plan applies equally to all custodial relationships. For qualified retirement plan accounts, plan assets are held by the plan’s own custodian or recordkeeper in the name of the plan or its trustees — not by our Firm. In either case, you or your authorized plan trustees retain full control over and direct access to those assets through the applicable custodian. A wind-down of our Firm does not affect your ownership of, or access to, your account.
Clients enrolled in employer-sponsored retirement plans under an ERISA Section 3(21) fiduciary advisory agreement are subject to a distinct wind-down process governed by their individual service agreements with the Firm. Written notification of the Adviser’s death or permanent incapacity, delivered by the Adviser’s spouse, estate executor, personal representative, or legal guardian, constitutes the contractual termination notice required under those agreements and is effective upon the plan sponsor’s receipt. Plan sponsors receiving such notice are responsible for notifying their plan recordkeeper to discontinue the adviser compensation component of the plan fee. No adviser compensation accrues after the effective date of termination.
We maintain this Succession Plan in writing, review it at least annually, and provide a summary to clients upon request. Detailed successor information is kept confidential with our records and is not published.
IV. Business Description
Richards Financial Planning, LLC is a financial advisor based in Houston, Texas. We are organized as a limited liability company under the laws of the State of Texas.
Alvin Van Richards, ChFC®, is the Firm’s Managing Member, Chief Compliance Officer, and majority owner. Mr. Richards has over thirty years of experience in the financial services business and spent twenty-five years as a Registered Representative with broker-dealers. You may find more about Mr. Richards’ history on FINRA’s BrokerCheck at https://brokercheck.finra.org/.
Our Firm offers four primary services to individuals and institutions:
- Retirement Income Planning
- Investment Management
- Financial Planning
- Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan Consulting and Asset Management
Our services may be broad-based, incorporating all four services, or narrowly focused on one of the specific services above.
We do not act as a broker, and our Firm does not hold client funds or securities. Instead, a custodian holds all assets for our asset-management clients. Our custodian is Altruist Corp (“Altruist”).
V. Office Locations
Our Firm has one office, located at 15923 Pinyon Creek Drive, Houston, Texas 77095.
VI. Alternative Physical Location(s) of Employees
In the event of a Significant Business Disruption, we will move to a new location and notify clients accordingly.
VII. Customers’ Access to Funds and Securities
Our Firm does not maintain custody of customers’ funds or securities. We have a business arrangement with a custodian to hold clients’ funds and securities. For more information, please contact us.
In the event of an internal or external Significant Business Disruption, we will work with our clients to inform them of the custodian’s Business Continuity Plan and help them navigate the processes for accessing their funds and securities.
VIII. Data Back-Up and Recovery (Hard Copy and Electronic)
Our Firm maintains its records electronically and is responsible for maintaining these books and records.
We scan original client documents, save them to our in-house computer system, and to a cloud-based storage platform. Our computer system is backed up continuously. We shred original documents unless a hard copy is required.
If an internal or external Significant Business Disruption causes the loss of our in-house electronic records, we will recover the data from our cloud storage.
IX. Financial and Operational Assessments
A. Operational Risk
In the event of a Significant Business Disruption, we will immediately identify what means will permit us to communicate with our customers, critical business constituents, critical banks, critical counterparties, and regulators. Although the effects of an SBD will determine the means of alternative communication, the options we will employ include phone, voicemail, and email. We will also retrieve our essential activity records as described above.
B. Financial and Credit Risk
In the event of a Significant Business Disruption, we will determine the value and liquidity of our investments and other assets to evaluate our ability to continue funding our operations and serving our clients. We will contact our custodians, clients, and critical banks to apprise them of our financial status.
If we determine that we may be unable to meet our obligations or otherwise continue to fund our operations, we will file appropriate notices with our regulators and immediately take reasonable steps, including instructing our clients to contact their custodian directly from that point forward.
X. Critical Systems
Our Firm’s critical systems ensure prompt and accurate access to client accounts and records, and processing of securities transactions. These include the systems of our custodian, Altruist, which provide custody services, processing of securities transactions, maintenance of and access to customer accounts, and delivery of funds and securities.
We have primary responsibility for establishing and maintaining our business relationships with our clients and sole responsibility for our critical functions. Our custodian provides account access, transaction services, clearance and settlement, maintenance of and access to customer accounts, and delivery of funds and securities.
Our custodian states that it will advise us of any material changes to its business continuity plan that might affect our ability to maintain our business.
XI. Alternate Communications Between the Firm and Customers, Employees, and Regulators
A. Customers
We communicate with our customers using phone, email, web-based video conferencing, U.S. mail, courier services, and in-person visits. In the event of a Significant Business Disruption, we will assess which means of communication are still available and use the most expedient method to communicate.
B. Employees
Since our Firm has no employees, there is no need for an employee communication strategy.
C. Regulators
We are registered as an investment advisory firm with the Texas State Securities Board. We communicate with our regulators by telephone, email, U.S. mail, and in person. In the event of a Significant Business Disruption, we will assess which means of communication are still available and communicate accordingly.
XII. Critical Business Constituents, Banks, and Counterparties
A. Business Constituents
Our critical business constituents are those with whom we have an ongoing commercial relationship. We have evaluated them and determined the extent to which we can continue our business relationship in the event of an internal or external Significant Business Disruption. If a constituent can no longer provide the goods or services we need, we will establish alternative arrangements. Our major suppliers are:
- AT&T — 800-288-2020
- Bank of America — 888-287-4637
XIII. Regulatory Reporting
Richards Financial Planning, LLC is a Texas state-registered investment adviser, regulated by the Texas State Securities Board under the Texas Securities Act and Board rules. As a state-registered adviser, we are also subject to the anti-fraud provisions of federal securities law.
We file our required reports, including Form ADV, electronically through the Investment Adviser Registration Depository (IARD), a filing system operated by FINRA on behalf of state and federal securities regulators. FINRA operates this filing system, but does not itself regulate or oversee our Firm.
In the event of a Significant Business Disruption, we will confirm with the Texas State Securities Board (and, where applicable, the IARD system) which filing means are available and will continue to file required reports using whatever communication means we have available.
XIV. Disclosure of Business Continuity Plan
We post a copy of this plan on our website and offer to provide it to our clients upon request. Confidential successor and access details are not included in the public version.
XV. Updates and Annual Review
Our Firm will update this plan whenever we have a material change to our operations, structure, business, or location, including a material change to our custodian. We review this plan annually and modify it as necessary.
XVI. Senior Manager Approval
I have approved this Business Continuity and Succession Plan as reasonably designed to enable our Firm to meet its obligations to customers in the event of a Significant Business Disruption and to provide for an orderly succession upon the death or incapacity of its sole adviser.
Signed: Van Richards, Managing Member
Date: 06/16/2026