Early Monday morning, one of Hong Kong's top financial regulators was seen at a Zhongshan golf club. Another one was having a holiday in Europe.
Everyone needed a break, one might say. Well, not if a key investment bank such as Lehman Brothers was on the verge of collapse.
During the last weekend, it was clear that Washington was not going to step in to help the beleaguered investment bank and when other big lenders including Bank of America Corp and Barclays chose to walk away, the writing was on the wall. Lehman's collapse sent a financial tsunami around the world.
Regulators worldwide had been put on full alert. Even the mainland's central bankers and regulators, whose anxiety should be somewhat controlled by its close monetary system, spent their Mid-Autumn Festival in meetings.
One possible reason for the rather relaxed attitude of our own regulators is that everything was under control. This means regulators had already called up the firm's management, looked into its books and market positions. The scenario analysis had been made. Once the firm went under, everybody knew what to do and who to call.
The other possibility is they did not feel the urgency.