Bermuda’s Bank of NT Butterfield & Son has sold its trust, wealth management and advisory business in Hong Kong, along with its trust operation in Malta, to the founder of Bentley Reid Group, the wealth management firm through which it originally acquired the businesses. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Butterfield said it has decided to focus its resources on a smaller number of “key jurisdictions” as it works to restore profitability and growth. The businesses being spun off made a net income of $0.4 million for the first half of this year.

Butterfield acquired the entire share capital of Bentley Reid, which had operations in London in addition to Hong Kong and Malta, in October 2007. Now, under the newly-announced deal, Bentley Reid’s founder, Nic Bentley, will reacquire the Hong Kong and Malta businesses and rebrand them under their original name. The London-based operations have been successfully integrated with Butterfield’s UK-based private banking, asset management and family office businesses and will be unaffected by the transaction, the bank said in a statement.

Butterfield additionally said that its links with Bentley Reid will remain strong: going forward Rupert Bentley, formerly chief executive of Bentley Reid, will remain at the helm of Butterfield’s asset management business in London, while also joining the board of the new Bentley Reid Group. Furthermore, Butterfield will continue to manage investment portfolios for clients of the reformed firm.

As a result of the divestments, Butterfield said it will take a charge during this quarter of $7.8 million, including a write-off of intangible assets of $4.2 million.