Banks hold emergency drill ahead of Occupy Central
Monetary Authority tests back-up plan for 'adverse' situations, as hundreds of activists march to rally support for 'civil referendum' on electoral reform
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority yesterday conducted an emergency drill with 55 banks ahead of the Occupy Central movement's threat to blockade the streets of the business district.
As bankers were testing their back-up plans, more than 300 campaigners for democracy set off from the business district for the first of seven days of marches aimed at rallying Hongkongers to vote in Occupy Central's "civil referendum" on electoral reform to be held from Friday to Sunday.
The Monetary Authority did not name the Occupy Central campaign directly in its statement, which said a periodic drill had taken place to test the reliability of its communications with the banks' back-up offices in the event of an emergency.
"The HKMA requires banks to have in place appropriate [business continuity plans] and to carry out periodic reviews and tests to ensure that the operation of their core business can continue under adverse circumstances, so as to minimise the impact on bank customers and the general public," the statement said.
"The drill assumed that due to unexpected events, the headquarters or other important operating sites of banks in Central as well as the HKMA's office, became inaccessible," it added.
The authority's chief executive Norman Chan Tak-lam, said the drill had gone smoothly and he was satisfied with the results.