Amendment: SEC Form SCHEDULE 13G/A filed by Geron Corporation
$GERN
Biotechnology: Pharmaceutical Preparations
Health Care
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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549 |
SCHEDULE 13G
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UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
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(Amendment No. 5)
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GERON CORPORATION (Name of Issuer) |
Common Stock, $0.001 par value per share (Title of Class of Securities) |
374163103 (CUSIP Number) |
03/31/2025 (Date of Event Which Requires Filing of this Statement) |
| Check the appropriate box to designate the rule pursuant to which this Schedule is filed: |
 Rule 13d-1(b)
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 Rule 13d-1(c)
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| Rule 13d-1(d)
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SCHEDULE 13G
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| CUSIP No. | 374163103 |
| 1 | Names of Reporting Persons
RA Capital Management, L.P. | ||||||||
| 2 | Check the appropriate box if a member of a Group (see instructions)
(a)
(b)
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| 3 | Sec Use Only | ||||||||
| 4 | Citizenship or Place of Organization
DELAWARE
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| Number of Shares Beneficially Owned by Each Reporting Person With: |
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| 9 | Aggregate Amount Beneficially Owned by Each Reporting Person
63,988,106.00 | ||||||||
| 10 | Check box if the aggregate amount in row (9) excludes certain shares (See Instructions)
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| 11 | Percent of class represented by amount in row (9)
9.9 % | ||||||||
| 12 | Type of Reporting Person (See Instructions)
IA, PN |
SCHEDULE 13G
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| CUSIP No. | 374163103 |
| 1 | Names of Reporting Persons
Peter Kolchinsky | ||||||||
| 2 | Check the appropriate box if a member of a Group (see instructions)
(a)
(b)
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| 3 | Sec Use Only | ||||||||
| 4 | Citizenship or Place of Organization
UNITED STATES
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| Number of Shares Beneficially Owned by Each Reporting Person With: |
| ||||||||
| 9 | Aggregate Amount Beneficially Owned by Each Reporting Person
63,988,106.00 | ||||||||
| 10 | Check box if the aggregate amount in row (9) excludes certain shares (See Instructions)
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| 11 | Percent of class represented by amount in row (9)
9.9 % | ||||||||
| 12 | Type of Reporting Person (See Instructions)
HC, IN |
SCHEDULE 13G
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| CUSIP No. | 374163103 |
| 1 | Names of Reporting Persons
Rajeev Shah | ||||||||
| 2 | Check the appropriate box if a member of a Group (see instructions)
(a)
(b)
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| 3 | Sec Use Only | ||||||||
| 4 | Citizenship or Place of Organization
UNITED STATES
| ||||||||
| Number of Shares Beneficially Owned by Each Reporting Person With: |
| ||||||||
| 9 | Aggregate Amount Beneficially Owned by Each Reporting Person
63,988,106.00 | ||||||||
| 10 | Check box if the aggregate amount in row (9) excludes certain shares (See Instructions)
| ||||||||
| 11 | Percent of class represented by amount in row (9)
9.9 % | ||||||||
| 12 | Type of Reporting Person (See Instructions)
HC, IN |
SCHEDULE 13G
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| CUSIP No. | 374163103 |
| 1 | Names of Reporting Persons
RA Capital Healthcare Fund, L.P. | ||||||||
| 2 | Check the appropriate box if a member of a Group (see instructions)
(a)
(b)
| ||||||||
| 3 | Sec Use Only | ||||||||
| 4 | Citizenship or Place of Organization
DELAWARE
| ||||||||
| Number of Shares Beneficially Owned by Each Reporting Person With: |
| ||||||||
| 9 | Aggregate Amount Beneficially Owned by Each Reporting Person
63,988,106.00 | ||||||||
| 10 | Check box if the aggregate amount in row (9) excludes certain shares (See Instructions)
| ||||||||
| 11 | Percent of class represented by amount in row (9)
9.9 % | ||||||||
| 12 | Type of Reporting Person (See Instructions)
PN |
SCHEDULE 13G
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| Item 1. | ||
| (a) | Name of issuer:
GERON CORPORATION | |
| (b) | Address of issuer's principal executive offices:
919 East Hillsdale Boulevard, Suite 250, Foster City, CA, 94404. | |
| Item 2. | ||
| (a) | Name of person filing:
The names of the persons filing this report (collectively, the "Reporting Persons") are:
RA Capital Management, L.P. ("RA Capital")
Peter Kolchinsky
Rajeev Shah
RA Capital Healthcare Fund, L.P. (the "Fund")
The Reporting Persons expressly disclaim status as a "group" for purposes of this Schedule 13G. | |
| (b) | Address or principal business office or, if none, residence:
The address of the principal business office of each of the Reporting Persons is:
c/o RA Capital Management, L.P., 200 Berkeley Street, 18th Floor, Boston MA 02116 | |
| (c) | Citizenship:
RA Capital and the Fund are Delaware limited partnerships.
Dr. Kolchinsky and Mr. Shah are United States citizens.
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| (d) | Title of class of securities:
Common Stock, $0.001 par value per share | |
| (e) | CUSIP No.:
374163103 | |
| Item 3. | If this statement is filed pursuant to §§ 240.13d-1(b) or 240.13d-2(b) or (c), check whether the person filing is a: | |
| (a) | Broker or dealer registered under section 15 of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78o);
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| (b) | Bank as defined in section 3(a)(6) of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78c);
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| (c) | Insurance company as defined in section 3(a)(19) of the Act (15 U.S.C. 78c);
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| (d) | Investment company registered under section 8 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-8);
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| (e) | An investment adviser in accordance with § 240.13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(E);
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| (f) | An employee benefit plan or endowment fund in accordance with § 240.13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(F);
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| (g) | A parent holding company or control person in accordance with § 240.13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(G);
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| (h) | A savings associations as defined in Section 3(b) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813);
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| (i) | A church plan that is excluded from the definition of an investment company under section 3(c)(14) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-3);
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| (j) | A non-U.S. institution in accordance with § 240.13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(J). If filing as a non-U.S. institution in accordance with § 240.13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(J),
please specify the type of institution: | |
| (k) | Group, in accordance with Rule 240.13d-1(b)(1)(ii)(K).
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| Item 4. | Ownership | |
| (a) | Amount beneficially owned:
Row 9 of each Reporting Person's cover page to this Schedule 13G sets forth the aggregate number of securities of the Issuer beneficially owned by such Reporting Person as of March 31, 2025 and is incorporated by reference.
The Fund directly holds 60,379,366 shares of Common Stock and pre-funded warrants ("Pre-Funded Warrants") exercisable for up to 29,053,145 shares of Common Stock. The Pre-Funded Warrants contain a provision (the "Beneficial Ownership Blocker"), which precludes the exercise of the Pre-Funded Warrants to the extent that, following exercise, the Fund, together with its affiliates and other attribution parties, would own more than 9.99% of the Common Stock outstanding. The Fund is currently prohibited from exercising a portion of the Pre-Funded Warrants to the extent that such exercise would result in beneficial ownership of more than 63,988,106 shares of Common Stock.
RA Capital Healthcare Fund GP, LLC is the general partner of the Fund. The general partner of RA Capital is RA Capital Management GP, LLC, of which Dr. Kolchinsky and Mr. Shah are the controlling persons. RA Capital serves as investment adviser for the Fund and may be deemed a beneficial owner, for purposes of Section 13(d) of the Act, of any securities of the Issuer held by the Fund. The Fund has delegated to RA Capital the sole power to vote and the sole power to dispose of all securities held in the Fund's portfolio, including the shares of the Issuer's Common Stock reported herein. Because the Fund has divested voting and investment power over the reported securities it holds and may not revoke that delegation on less than 61 days' notice, the Fund disclaims beneficial ownership of the securities it holds for purposes of Section 13(d) of the Act. As managers of RA Capital, Dr. Kolchinsky and Mr. Shah may be deemed beneficial owners, for purposes of Section 13(d) of the Act, of any securities of the Issuer beneficially owned by RA Capital. RA Capital, Dr. Kolchinsky, and Mr. Shah disclaim beneficial ownership of the securities reported in this Schedule 13G other than for the purpose of determining their obligations under Section 13(d) of the Act, and the filing of this Schedule 13G shall not be deemed an admission that either RA Capital, Dr. Kolchinsky, or Mr. Shah is the beneficial owner of such securities for any other purpose. | |
| (b) | Percent of class:
Due to the Beneficial Ownership Blocker listed in the Pre-Funded Warrants, each Reporting Person's beneficial ownership percentage was 9.99% as of March 31, 2025. Such percentage is based upon the sum of (i) 636,912,845 shares of the Issuer's Common Stock outstanding as of March 24, 2025, as reported in the Issuer's Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on April 8, 2025 and (ii) 3,608,740 shares of Common Stock issuable upon the exercise of the Pre-Funded Warrants. Due to field limitations of the EDGAR filing system, the percentages listed in Row 11 of the Reporting Persons' cover pages have been rounded down to 9.9%. | |
| (c) | Number of shares as to which the person has:
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| (i) Sole power to vote or to direct the vote:
Row 5 of each Reporting Person's cover page to this Schedule 13G sets forth the sole power to vote or to direct the vote of securities of the Issuer beneficially owned by such Reporting Person as of March 31, 2025 and is incorporated by reference. | ||
| (ii) Shared power to vote or to direct the vote:
Row 6 of each Reporting Person's cover page to this Schedule 13G sets forth the shared power to vote or to direct the vote of securities of the Issuer beneficially owned by such Reporting Person as of March 31, 2025 and is incorporated by reference. | ||
| (iii) Sole power to dispose or to direct the disposition of:
Row 7 of each Reporting Person's cover page to this Schedule 13G sets forth the sole power to dispose or to direct the disposition of securities of the Issuer beneficially owned by such Reporting Person as of March 31, 2025 and is incorporated by reference. | ||
| (iv) Shared power to dispose or to direct the disposition of:
Row 8 of each Reporting Person's cover page to this Schedule 13G sets forth the shared power to dispose or to direct the disposition of securities of the Issuer beneficially owned by such Reporting Person as of March 31, 2025 and is incorporated by reference. | ||
| Item 5. | Ownership of 5 Percent or Less of a Class. | |
| Item 6. | Ownership of more than 5 Percent on Behalf of Another Person. | |
Not Applicable
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| Item 7. | Identification and Classification of the Subsidiary Which Acquired the Security Being Reported on by the Parent Holding Company or Control Person. | |
Not Applicable
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| Item 8. | Identification and Classification of Members of the Group. | |
Not Applicable
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| Item 9. | Notice of Dissolution of Group. | |
Not Applicable
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| Item 10. | Certifications: |
By signing below I certify that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, the securities referred to above were not acquired and are not held for the purpose of or with the effect of changing or influencing the control of the issuer of the securities and were not acquired and are not held in connection with or as a participant in any transaction having that purpose or effect, other than activities solely in connection with a nomination under ?? 240.14a-11. |
| SIGNATURE | |
After reasonable inquiry and to the best of my knowledge and belief, I certify that the information set forth in this statement is true, complete and correct.
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Exhibit Information
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Exhibit 99.1 Joint Filing Agreement |