Hong Kong protesters have come up with a new nonviolent protest tactic – taking all their money out of ATMs and banks to send a message to the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam.. On August 16, Hong Kong protesters plan to withdraw as much money as possible from their banks or change their currency into US dollars, both to protect their own assets and to show the mainland that the semiautonomous island is more than just a cash cow.. The Hong Kong student who started this latest protest, which activists have named the Cashout HKD to USD, told INSIDER that as of Thursday, over HK$70 million had been withdrawn, both in Hong Kong currency and in US currency; the claim couldn't be independently verified.