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EXHIBIT 99.1
Menlo Park, CA - September 6, 2000 -- Geron Corporation (Nasdaq: GERN)
announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Acqua
Wellington North American Equities Fund Ltd. ("Acqua Wellington") for an equity
financing facility covering the sale of up to $50 million of the company's
common stock over the next 24 months.
This financing will be made pursuant to an effective shelf registration
previously filed by Geron with the Securities and Exchange Commission covering
the sale of up to five million shares of its common stock. These shares may be
sold, at Geron's discretion, at a small discount to market at the time of sale.
Geron will control the amount and timing of each sale of stock. Geron intends to
use the proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes.
"Acqua Wellington has developed a flexible financing model. It allows a
company to raise capital efficiently when market conditions are favorable,"
stated David L. Greenwood, senior vice president and chief financial officer.
Acqua Wellington Asset Management, LLC acts as an advisor to the Acqua
Wellington Family of Funds, which is targeted at investment opportunities among
mid-cap and small-cap publicly traded companies in domestic and global markets.
Their primary focus is in the life science and technology sectors.
Geron is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing
and commercializing therapeutic and diagnostic products for application in
oncology and regenerative medicine, and research tools for drug discovery.
Geron's product development programs are based upon three patented core
technologies: telomerase, human pluripotent stem cells and nuclear transfer.
This news release may contain forward-looking statements made pursuant
to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements in this
press release regarding future use of Geron's funding constitute forward-looking
statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation,
risks regarding need for additional capital and history of operating losses.
Actual results may differ materially from the results anticipated in these
forward-looking statements. Additional information on potential factors that
could affect our results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed from
time to time in Geron's periodic reports, including the quarterly report on Form
10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2000.
Contact:
Investor and Media Relations Investor Inquiries
David Greenwood Aline Schimmel
Geron Corporation Burns McClellan
650-473-7700 212-213-0006
To receive an index and copies of recent press releases, call Geron's News on
Demand toll-free fax service, 1-800-782-3279. Additional information about Geron
Corporation can be obtained at http://www.geron.com.
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