Gerova Announces Two Major Transactions

Agrees to acquire London-based investment bank Seymour Pierce and New York-based Ticonderoga Securities; Gerova adopts name of Seymour Pierce

HAMILTON, Bermuda and LONDON, December 7, 2010 - Gerova Financial Group, Ltd. ("Gerova") (NYSE: GFC) and Seymour Pierce
Holdings Ltd. ("Seymour Pierce") today announced that they have signed a
definitive agreement for Gerova to acquire 100% of Seymour Pierce, creating a
diversified financial services company focused on investment banking, asset
management and reinsurance.

Upon completion of the acquisition, which has been unanimously approved
by Gerova's Board of Directors, Gerova will change its name to Seymour Pierce
& Company Ltd., and will continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange
under the new ticker symbol "SPI."

Gerova has also entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of Ticonderoga
Securities, a New York-based institutional broker-dealer founded by Joel
Plasco and Shawn McLoughlin, formerly Chief Executive Officer and North
American Chief Executive Officer, respectively, of Collins Stewart plc (LSE:
CLST).

Keith Harris, Seymour Pierce Executive Chairman and CEO, will become
Chairman and CEO of Gerova effective January 1, 2011, assuming day-to-day
control of the group at that time. Plasco will become CEO of the combined
investment banking businesses, with McLoughlin appointed President and COO.
Plasco will also join the board of Gerova.

Gerova is a newly capitalized reinsurance and financial services group
established in January 2010 through the completion of nine simultaneous
private equity portfolio acquisitions. Seymour Pierce is a privately-owned,
full-service investment bank tracing its origin to 1803 in the City of
London. Ticonderoga specializes in US domestic equity trading, equity
research, equity derivative execution and research, international market
making and risk arbitrage.

The transactions combine the investment banking, equity research, sales
and trading, and private client asset management services of Seymour Pierce
and Ticonderoga with the financial resources of Gerova and its access to
long-term investable assets through its reinsurance businesses lead by
insurance CEO, Lou Hensley. The combined enterprise will have more than 210
employees in London and New York.

"We are extremely pleased to combine our successful investment banking
business with Gerova's existing operations to create a broad based
international financial services group. We believe that the risk management
and capital allocation expertise of these businesses are highly complementary
to the Gerova reinsurance business model, particularly as Gerova uses its
existing surplus regulatory capital as a platform to expand its reinsurance
business and investment portfolio," Harris said.

"The financial services industry is undergoing unprecedented changes
worldwide and we are fortunate to have brought together a dynamic group of
people and operating assets at a time when a well capitalized NYSE-listed
enterprise can benefit from uncommon opportunities to grow organically and by
strategic acquisition," said Joel Plasco, Chairman of Ticonderoga.

"Keith Harris is a proven leader with a track record of success in a
number of high profile senior roles over the last 25 years. We are extremely
fortunate to bring his extensive talents to the helm of this public company.
We believe that the combination of Seymour Pierce and Ticonderoga, together
with Keith's leadership and the proven company building capabilities of Joel
Plasco and Shawn McLoughlin, provide a compelling platform to grow a
diversified financial services business," said Joseph J. Bianco, acting Chief
Executive Officer of Gerova.

Consummation of the acquisitions is subject to the approval of the change
of control of Ticonderoga from Financial Industry Regulation Authority
(FINRA) and the approval of the change of control of Seymour Pierce from the
Financial Services Authority of the United Kingdom. The acquisitions are
stock for stock transactions. Accordingly, there are no financing
contingencies to closing.

About Keith Harris, Ph.D.

Keith Harris has had a long and varied career in financial services in
the United Kingdom, United States and Asia. He has been Executive Chairman
and CEO of Seymour Pierce since 2003, when he led a management group that
acquired the company. Harris, who holds a Ph.D. in economics, served as
global CEO of HSBC Investment Bank PLC from 1994 to 1999, where he oversaw a
staff of approximately 13,500 in forty-six countries. Under his leadership,
HSBC Investment Bank achieved an average annual return on equity of more than
20%.

Prior to that, Harris held positions including President of Morgan
Grenfell Inc., head of international investment banking at Drexel Burnham
Lambert and CEO of Apax Partners Corporate Finance. He also has been active
in the insurance sector, serving since 1999 as a non-executive director of
Benfield Group Plc., a reinsurance intermediary and capital advisory
business, until its acquisition by Aon Re Global in 2009. Since 2009, he has
been a director of Cooper Gay Swett & Crawford, one of the world's largest
privately owned insurance and reinsurance brokers, headquartered in the City
of London.

At Seymour Pierce, Harris established himself as the leading strategic
financial adviser to top-level professional soccer teams, advising on dozens
of acquisitions. He was also a Director of Wembley National Stadium Ltd. from
January 2001 to September 2007. From August 2000 to August 2002, he served as
Chairman of the Football League, the oldest professional soccer league in the
world.

About Seymour Pierce

Seymour Pierce provides investment banking, equity research, sales and
trading, private client asset management services to middle market companies
and institutional investors. Seymour Pierce traces is its history to 1803 and
its origins on the London Stock Exchange to 1845. Seymour Pierce is a leading
broker on the AIM, the growth company market of the London Stock Exchange,
with a full service London-based equity capital markets desk, research,
trading and corporate finance operations.

About Ticonderoga Securities

Ticonderoga Securities was founded by Joel Plasco and Shawn McLoughlin
through the acquisition and capitalization of Reynders, Gray & Co. Inc, a 30
year old US broker dealer in August 2009. Ticonderoga specializes in US
domestic equity trading, equity research, equity derivative execution and
research, international market making and risk arbitrage. Ticonderoga
concentrates on domestic and international equities and focuses on high
quality, conflict free order execution, as well as a differentiated research
offering to support its first class execution capabilities. Ticonderoga has
an exclusive partnership with Shenyin Wanguo Securities (H.K.) Limited
("SWS"), one of the largest securities houses in China. Ticonderoga's client
base includes many of the most highly respected institutional investors,
corporate plan sponsors and public plan funds, money managers and mutual
funds, bank trust departments, hedge funds and financial advisors in the US
and Europe. The company operates from its headquarters in New York, along
with additional offices in Boston, Richmond and San Francisco. Ticonderoga
Securities LLC is registered as a broker-dealer with the US Securities and
Exchange Commission and is a member of FINRA and the NYSE.

About Gerova Financial Group, Ltd.

Gerova Financial Group, Ltd. is diversified financial services company
formed to acquire private equity portfolios and to provide reinsurance
capacity principally to life and annuity insurance carriers. The company went
public as a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) and later successfully
became an operating company in January 2010 after acquiring nine private
equity portfolios from hedge funds in exchange for its public stock. In June
2010 Gerova Reinsurance Ltd received a class 3 insurance license from the
Bermuda Monetary Authority. Gerova was admitted to trade on the NYSE in
September 2010 and is listed in the Russell 2000(R) index published by
Russell Investments, a ranking of the top US listed public companies.

For further information concerning the terms of the proposed transactions
involving Seymour Pierce Holdings Ltd. and Ticonderoga Securities LLC, please
refer to Gerova's Form 6-K filed today with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding the
Company, its acquired assets and the Company's business after completion of
the transactions consummated in January 2010. Forward-looking statements are
statements that are not historical facts. Such forward-looking statements,
which are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of the management
of the Company, are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause
actual results to differ from the forward-looking statements. The following
factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ from those set
forth in the Forward-Looking Statements: (i) potential material reductions in
the value of a substantial portion of the Company's assets acquired in
connection with the business combinations consummated in January 2010; (ii)
officers and directors allocating their time to other businesses or
potentially having conflicts of interest with the Company's businesses; (iii)
success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, the Company's
officers, key employees or directors; (iv) the potential liquidity and
trading of the Company's public securities; (iv) the Company's revenues and
operating performance; (vi) changes in overall economic conditions; (vii)
anticipated business development activities of the Company following
consummation of the transactions described above; (viii) risks and costs
associated with regulation of corporate governance and disclosure standards
(including pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002); and
(ix) other relevant risks detailed in the Company's filings with the SEC. In
addition, there are risks associated with the transactions, including, but
are not limited to, (1) the occurrence of any event, change or other
circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the Transaction
Agreement and Agreement and Plan of Merger between Gerova and Seymour Pierce
(the "Transaction Agreement"); (2) the outcome of any legal proceedings that
may be instituted against Gerova and others following announcement of the
Transaction Agreement and transactions contemplated therein; (3) the
inability to complete the transactions contemplated by the Transaction
Agreement due to the failure to obtain stockholder approval, (4) the
inability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals required to complete the
transactions contemplated by the Transaction Agreement; (5) the risk that the
proposed transaction disrupts current plans and operations and the potential
difficulties in employee retention as a result of the announcement and
consummation of the transactions described herein; (6) the ability to
recognize the anticipated benefits of the combination of Gerova and Seymour
Pierce, including potential cost savings and the ability to expand into new
business lines; and (7) the possibility that Gerova may be adversely affected
by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors. The information set
forth herein should be read in light of such risks. Neither the Company nor
any target companies or funds we intend to acquire assumes any obligation to
update the information contained in this release.

    Contact:

    For Gerova Financial Group, Ltd.:
    Jeff Lloyd
    Thomas Mulligan
    Sitrick and Company
    +1-212-573-6100

    For Seymour Pierce:
    Neil Bennett
    Daniel Yea
    Maitland
    +44-20-7379-5151

Jeff Lloyd, or Thomas Mulligan, Sitrick and Company for Gerova Financial Group, Ltd., +1-212-573-6100; or Neil Bennett, or Daniel Yea, both of Maitland, for Seymour Pierce, +44-20-7379-5151