Of that Q4 loss, $8.7 million arose from a non-cash goodwill charge, partially offset by a $6 million tax repayment.

But full-year losses were down to $20 million in 2009 from $136 million in 2008, when goodwill expenses had an even larger impact.

The level of troubled assets was stable in the quarter. It finished the year with $63 million in late or unpaid loans, just under 5 per cent of its total loans, down from $66.1 million at end September 2009. Repossessed property holdings rose to $5.1 million from $2.2 million.

In September 2009, a group of more than 50 local investors led by Gibraltar Private chief executive Steven Hayworth paid $93 million for the bank to Boston Private Financial Holdings.