QuickLinks -- Click here to rapidly navigate through this documentExhibit 23.1
CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS
The Board of Directors of
Boston Private Financial Holdings, Inc.
We consent to the incorporation by reference in the Registration Statements (Nos. 333-30755, 333-06941, and 033-93634) on Forms S-8 and in Registration Statements (Nos. 333-95161, 333-77069, 333-46391, and 333-19823) on Form S-3 of Boston Private Financial Holdings, Inc., of our report dated January 12, 2001 relating to the consolidated balance sheets of Boston Private Financial Holdings, Inc., and subsidiaries as of December 31, 2000 and 1999, and the related consolidated statements of operations, changes in stockholders' equity and cash flows for each of the years in the three year period ended December 31, 2000, which report appears in the December 31, 2000 annual report on Form 10-K of Boston Private Financial Holdings, Inc.
/s/ KPMG LLP
Boston, Massachusetts
February 26, 2001
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CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS
