Cover Your Arse (CYA) Protocol
In institutional environments, document everything because the institution will sacrifice you.
The Cover Your Arse (CYA) Protocol is an institutional survival framework that Stevenson learned from Billy (Bill Thomas), the veteran Sterling trader at Citibank. The core principle is simple but essential: in large organizations, the institution's interests will always supersede the individual's, and when conflicts arise, the institution has vastly more resources to rewrite history. Your only defense is contemporaneous documentation.
Billy embodied this principle throughout his career. He was meticulous about documentation, never cutting corners, never leaving a paper trail that could be used against him. When Stevenson later found himself in a protracted battle with Citibank over his departure and compensation, Billy's wisdom proved prescient. Stevenson carried a recorder at all times, preserved email chains, and maintained written records of verbal agreements that the bank later attempted to deny.
The framework extends beyond formal documentation to a broader awareness of how institutional power works. It includes understanding that verbal promises are worthless, that friendly colleagues may be reporting to management, that HR works for the company not the employee, and that the kindly figure in a meeting may be the one who ordered it.
- If it is not documented, it did not happen. Verbal agreements are worth the paper they are not written on.
- The institution has more resources than you and can afford to rewrite history. Your documentation is your only equalizer.
- HR works for the company, not for you. Every conversation with HR is an institutional interaction, not a personal one.
- The kindly figure in the meeting may be the one who ordered the meeting. Judge people by their structural incentives, not their demeanor.
- Playing it clean from the start costs nothing extra but can save everything when the institution turns against you.
- Document Everything in Real TimeCreate contemporaneous records of all important conversations, decisions, and agreements. Stevenson kept written records, preserved emails, and eventually carried a recorder. The key word is contemporaneous; records created after the fact are far less credible than those created at the time.Pro tipSend follow-up emails after verbal conversations summarizing what was discussed and agreed. This creates a documented record that the other party tacitly confirms by not objecting.WarningKnow the legal requirements around recording conversations in your jurisdiction. In some places, recording without consent is illegal.
- Maintain Copies Outside Institutional SystemsKeep personal copies of important documents outside the organization's systems. Stevenson wrote his trade thesis on two pieces of paper, keeping one in his desk and one at home. When he later needed evidence, the institutional copies were under the bank's control, but his personal copies were not.Pro tipUse personal email to send yourself copies of key documents. Date-stamped personal emails are harder to dispute than claims about physical documents.WarningBe careful not to violate confidentiality agreements. Document your own contributions, agreements, and conversations; do not copy proprietary material.
- Identify Who Has Structural Incentives Against YouMap the power structure around you and identify whose incentives might conflict with yours. Stevenson eventually realized that the people who appeared to be on his side, like the Icicle and the Slug, might actually have been orchestrating his confinement. Always consider the structural position, not just the personal relationship.WarningParanoia is a spectrum. Excessive suspicion can be as damaging as excessive trust. Focus on structural incentives rather than personal motives.
- Play Clean from Day OneThe best defense is a record that cannot be attacked. Stevenson reflected on how critical it was that he had been playing clean from the start. With millions of recorded trades and chat conversations, the bank could have constructed a case from any misstep. Having a clean record made their task impossible.Pro tipAssume every email, chat message, and phone call is being recorded and reviewed. Conduct yourself accordingly at all times, not just during disputes.
- Know Your Exit Before You Need ItUnderstand your legal rights, contractual obligations, and available exit paths before a conflict arises. Stevenson's battle with Citibank was prolonged because he did not fully understand his exit options until he was already trapped. Billy's wisdom included knowing the rules of the game well enough to know when and how to walk away.Pro tipConsult a lawyer before you think you need one. The cost of a preliminary consultation is trivial compared to the cost of navigating institutional conflict without counsel.
After deciding to leave Citibank, Stevenson discovered that the bank had no intention of letting him go easily. His charity exit application was rejected on a technicality. His housing was cancelled to pressure him. Bureaucratic delays stretched for months. Throughout this ordeal, Stevenson relied on his documentation habit, carrying a recorder to meetings and preserving every email exchange with management.
Billy Thomas survived decades on trading floors that chewed up and spat out countless colleagues. While others were fired, forced out, or maneuvered into untenable positions, Billy's meticulous documentation habit meant that any attempt to act against him would face a well-documented defense. His CYA discipline was so thorough that management simply found it easier to leave him alone.
Billy Thomas was the oldest and most experienced trader on the STIRT desk, a Liverpudlian who arrived before dawn every day and was universally acknowledged as the smartest trader present. Billy's cardinal rule, repeated so often it became his defining characteristic, was CYA: Cover Your Arse. He had survived decades on trading floors by ensuring he always had documentation that would protect him if the institution turned hostile.
Stevenson absorbed this lesson viscerally during his battle to leave Citibank. After being denied exit through various bureaucratic maneuvers, having his housing cancelled, and watching the bank use every tool at its disposal to keep him trapped, he realized that Billy's paranoia was not paranoia at all. It was hard-won wisdom about how institutional power actually operates. The recorder he carried in his pocket during his final confrontation with management was a direct application of Billy's teaching.