The banking group, which is refocusing its efforts on growth markets in regions such as Asia, has spun off business units in Bermuda.

UK/Hong Kong-listed HSBC has agreed to sell its Bermuda-based private banking and trust businesses to the Bank of Butterfield & Sons as the lender continues to focus more on selected growth markets and exit countries such as Turkey and Brazil.

Existing private banking clients will be referred to Butterfield, HSBC said in a statement. The financial terms of the transaction weren’t disclosed in the bank’s statement yesterday.

As at the end of last year, HSBC said its trust and investment business had approximately $24 billion of assets under administration and $1.5 billion of assets under management. The banking portfolio had around $1.2 billion of assets under management.

The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to complete in the first half of next year. 

The deal “represents further progress in the execution of HSBC Private Bank’s strategy to focus on a smaller number of future growth markets,” HSBC said.

Earlier this year, HSBC said it intends to sell its Turkey and Brazil operations, while building business in the Guangdong province of China and other parts of Asia-Pacific. 

Butterfield, a specialist private banking house, operates from a number of jurisdictions such as Bermuda, the Channel Islands and UK.