FreeSeas Announces The Results Of Its 2010 Annual General Meeting Of Shareholders; 1:5 Reverse Stock Split To Be Effective October 1, 2010

PIRAEUS, Greece, Sept. 30, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FreeSeas Inc. (Nasdaq:FREE) (Nasdaq:FREEZ) ("FreeSeas" or the "Company"), a transporter of dry-bulk cargoes through the ownership and operation of a fleet of seven Handysize vessels and two Handymax vessels, today announced the official results of its 2010 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders, held on September 30, 2010 in Athens, Greece. The following proposals were approved by the Company's shareholders:

1. Focko Nauta and Keith Bloomfield were elected to the Board of Directors, to serve until the 2013 Annual General Meeting of Shareholders;  
2. The Company's Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation were amended to effect a reverse stock split of the Company's issued and outstanding common stock at a ratio of one share for every five shares outstanding; and  
3. The appointment of Ernst & Young (Hellas) Certified Auditors-Accountants S.A. as the Company's independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2010 was ratified.

Details on the Reverse Stock Split

The Company anticipates that its common stock will begin trading on a split adjusted basis when the market opens on October 1, 2010. Beginning on that date, FreeSeas' common stock will trade for 20 trading days under ticker symbol "FREED" to provide notice of the reverse stock split. After this period, the symbol will revert to "FREE." The common shares will also trade under a new CUSIP number Y26496 144 effective October 1, 2010. In addition, the Company's outstanding Class Z warrants will be proportionately adjusted in accordance with the terms of the warrants and trade under the symbol "FREEZD" for 20 trading days, and then revert to "FREEZ."  

The reverse stock split will consolidate five shares of common stock into one share of common stock at a par value of $.001 per share. As a result of the reverse stock split, the number of outstanding common shares will be reduced from 32,437,480 to 6,487,496, excluding outstanding and unexercised share options and warrants and subject to adjustment for fractional shares. The reverse stock split will not affect any shareholder's ownership percentage of FreeSeas' common shares or warrants, except to the limited extent that the reverse stock split would result in any shareholder owning a fractional share. Fractional shares of common stock will be rounded up to the nearest whole share.