Occupy Central demonstrations, which started in Hong Kong on September 27, have forced markets to re-evaluate risks associated with political stability of the territory. There's a marked discrepancy, however, in the perception of the risk between bankers in Hong Kong and overseas. While financial activity in the city remains mostly "business as usual", news media coverage abroad creates an image of a threat to the city's fabric and its ability to function as a politically robust, pro-business environment.

The reaction has been visible in the decline of the stock market. The Hang Seng Index was down by 1.90% on September 29 and by a further 1.28% on September 30. The drop is partly due to a knee-jerk reaction to the media coverage, and partly to a recognition that the political environment in Hong Kong has become a lot more uncertain, according to Keith Pogson, senior partner at EY. "The market is worried about the political uncertainty, what the outcome will be, how long it will continue for," he said.

"If you're sitting in London or New York and looking at the front page of the Wall Street Journal […] it looks like there's a lot going on," he noted, adding that local risk officers at international companies find they need to explain the situation to their leadership to get them comfortable.

Not that the city hasn't been inconvenienced. Very few financial companies would come on the record to comment about the direct effect of the protests on their business. Off the record, The Asset has heard of issues with commuting to work and finding a place for lunch while many small businesses are closed, but generally it's business as usual, while companies are monitoring the situation and staying in touch with regulators.

On September 30, in the third full day of demonstrations, 37 branches or offices of 21 banks in the main areas were closed as a precaution, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) daily communiqué said. Trading, settlement, liquidity and interbank rates have been normal and systems were functioning routinely, it stated.

CLSA, an investment banking company, is making contingency arrangements for their employees to work at alternative sites should they not be able to reach their office in Admiralty, according to a company statement. EY, whose offices are across the street from the Hong Kong government buildings, the focal point of the protest, wrote in a statement that it too has made arrangements to maintain the continuity of business and does not expect its operations to be significantly affected.

Fitch Ratings, a credit rating agency, reaffirmed Hong Kong's AA+ rating with stable outlook on September 15. "We don't expect the protests to have a rating impact in the short term," remarked Andrew Colquhoun in a prepared statement on September 29. While acknowledging the potential impact of the protests on the city's stability and attractiveness as an investment destination, he admitted that "those questions will likely be answered over months or years rather than days."