Rather, in retaliation, the protesters took to the streets on Saturday and Sunday in another round of violent clashes with police, the SCMP reports.

Sunday marked the third straight day of unrest and demonstrations over the mask ban - many Hong Kongers took to the streets as soon as the ban was announced on Friday and firms with a large presence in Hong Kong, including HSBC and Ernst & Young warned employees to work from home on Friday and through the weekend.

That proved to be a prescient decision, as in at least one incident, a group of protesters was filmed beating up a young JP Morgan banker who had the temerity to defend Beijing by shouting 'we are all Chinese'.