About the SFC and the law, this might add color,

https://fundselectorasia.com/sfc-says-business-as-usual-in-hk/

As with any law, it s all in the interpretation and one must heed both the spirit of the law and the letter of the law.

In my experience (in finance), I find European companies far more concerned with compliance to the spirit of the law/regulation than their Wall Street counterparts, who deliberately and perhaps cleverly focus on the letter of the law...the cause of much friction between European staff and New York ones... leading to bust ups and resignations. It d be interesting to see how this plays out in HK.

On your HK friend, am surprised by your surprise, especially it being so late.

The movement left common sense and, some would say, common decency, sometime last summer. And I fear the same might be said of the current efforts out of Washington on multiple issues, not least regarding China/Chicom, irrespective of will and intentions. Some might dismiss those as being secondary to lofty ideals, but losing those usually hampers one's ability to achieve one's objectives.