Discover how Syn Yew’s RSA Framework™ transforms risk management and client advisory using human-AI collaboration. From ECL roots to Co-Pilot execution.
Syn Yew’s RSA Framework: A Smarter Way to Make Credit and Business Decisions
In today’s volatile environment, traditional credit assessments fall short. Risk signals come faster. Structures must be smarter. And bankers must act sooner — all while preserving relationships and driving commercial outcomes.
Enter the RSA Framework™, created by veteran banker and strategic advisor Syn Yew. RSA stands for Risks, Structures, Actions — and it reframes how we think about managing clients, credit, and complexity.
But this isn’t just another risk model. The RSA Framework™ is a co-pilot system, combining the analytical power of AI with the strategic intelligence of bankers. It helps you see more, decide faster, and act earlier.
What Is the RSA Framework™?
At its core, the RSA Framework™ reimagines the old Expected Credit Loss (ECL) formula : Probability of Default × Loss Given Default × Exposure at Default into a proactive, client-facing decision tool:
| Traditional ECL Term | RSA Equivalent | Unit | Human Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Probability of Default (PD) | Risks | % | Anticipate |
| Loss Given Default (LGD) | Structures | % | Advise |
| Exposure at Default (EAD) | Actions | $ | Execute |
Each lever in the RSA Framework™ has a dual workflow:
– AI handles the heavy lift: scanning data, modeling outcomes, triggering alerts
– Human bankers add strategic value: interpreting, advising, executing
🔹 RISKS: Assess → Anticipate
- AI: Assess
✅ Fits current language e.g. credit assessment.
✅ Reflects weighted, data-led evaluation from multiple signals. - Human: Anticipate
✅ Suggests foresight, timing, risk trajectory — critical to proactive advisory.
✅ Goes beyond “assess” to include strategic judgment and client context.
🧠 Why it works: “Assess” is the raw score. “Anticipate” is the narrative insight.
✅ Strong pairing.
🔹 STRUCTURES: Design → Advise
- AI: Design
🔸 “Design” for AI implies creativity, but AI is often just surfacing pre-structured options or optimizing constraints.
✅ Still acceptable given trend toward AI-generated term sheets / docs. - Human: Advise
✅ Powerful shift — repositions the banker as a trusted advisor, not merely a “structurer.”
✅ Includes interpretation, customization, negotiation.
🧠 Why it works: AI can generate options. Banker filters, adapts, and advises the client on trade-offs.
✅ More relationship-centric and client-centric
🔹 ACTIONS: Trigger → Execute
- AI: Trigger
✅ Fits internal workflow thinking — especially for early warning systems or automated action points.
✅ Captures time-sensitive logic (e.g., threshold crossed = alert). - Human: Execute
✅ Institutional term. Ownership and responsibility sit with relationship teams or decision-makers.
🧠 Why it works: AI opens the gate. Human walks through it.
✅ Operationally sound, enterprise-ready language.
🤖 + 🧠 The RSA Co-Pilot Model: Division of Intelligence Between AI and Banker
| RSA Lever | What AI Does | What the Banker Does |
|---|---|---|
| Risks | Assess – scan data patterns and signals | Anticipate – interpret direction, timing, and relevance |
| Structures | Design – generate optimized structural options | Advise – select and tailor solutions with clients |
| Actions | Trigger – surface alerts and action points | Execute – take timely action that creates alpha |
“Let AI assess, design, and trigger. You anticipate, advise, and execute.”
— Syn Yew
This is the next frontier of banking: bankers as strategic advisors, not document pushers. AI reduces toil. Humans create trust.
📌 Sidebar – Origin Story: From ECL Model to RSA Co-Pilot
💡 The Birth of the Framework
The RSA Framework™ has its roots in the Expected Credit Loss (ECL) model — a technical calculation of potential losses used in banking.
But Syn Yew saw a critical limitation:
“The ECL model was reactive. It told you how much you might lose — but not how to intervene early or add value.”
In 2015, with the first version, Syn Yew adapted the model into a more actionable logic:
🔹 RSA Version 1:
Analyse Risks. Develop Structures. Take Actions.
It gave bankers a way to move from passive loss modeling to proactive client strategy. But it still depended heavily on manual work — data gathering, analysis, document review.
🔹 RSA Co-Pilot: The Upgrade
In 2025, with the rise of Gen AI and automated risk engines, Syn Yew evolved the framework into a co-pilot system — where:
- AI handles the toil
- Bankers focus on trust, judgment, and origination
The RSA Co-Pilot was born.
Why RSA Matters for Modern Banking
Whether you’re in credit, relationship management, portfolio monitoring or origination, RSA helps you:
- Spot risk signals before they become problems
- Structure smarter deals with faster turnaround
- Take action earlier and commercially
- Turn risk conversations into value-added advisory
And unlike typical models, RSA is client-facing. It gives bankers a way to frame their thinking when engaging CEOs, CFOs, or Boards.
Who Should Use the RSA Framework™
RSA is already being used by:
✅ Corporate and Commercial Bankers
✅ Credit Approvers and Portfolio Managers
✅ Risk Officers and Restructuring Teams
✅ Product Specialists (Trade, FX, Treasury, Capital Markets)
✅ Strategy and Advisory Teams
It’s also embedded in internal training programs like the Credit Institute, and supported by tools like:
- Time Lens™ – to map risk evolution
- Trigger Benchmarks™ – to activate early actions
- 6 Degrees to Cash Flow™ – to trace external shocks inward
More Business. Less Risk. Earlier.
RSA isn’t about tighter controls. It’s about smarter commercial moves:
- Offering working capital lines before liquidity dries up
- Advising on covenant changes before breaches occur
- Exiting exposures before deterioration hits headlines
It’s how modern bankers win in a volatile world.
Ready to Co-Pilot?
Download the RSA Framework™ Primer to start using the model in your next deal, review, or client discussion.
👉 [Download PDF]
👉 [Book a Training Session]
👉 [Explore More from Syn Yew at CreditBytes.org]
Let’s turn this into a platform for lasting mindshare.
