Exhibit 99.1
OncoGenex
Pharmaceuticals to Raise $9.5 Million Through Sale of Common Stock
BOTHELL,
WA and VANCOUVER — July 20, 2009 — OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: OGXI)
announced today it has entered into purchase agreements with certain institutional investors for
the sale of 475,000 shares of its common stock at a price of $20 per share through a registered
direct offering. The transaction is expected to provide gross
proceeds of $9.5 million to OncoGenex
before deducting costs associated with the offering, and will be used primarily for manufacturing
activities and general corporate purposes. The parties expect to close the transaction on or about
July 24, 2009.
The shares of common stock offered by OncoGenex in this transaction will be issued pursuant to the
Company’s existing shelf registration statement on Form S-3, which was declared effective by the
Securities and Exchange Commission on July 17, 2009. There was no placement agent in this
transaction.
“These funds strengthen our balance sheet, substantially extending our runway and assisting our
advancement toward our primary objective to secure a co-development and commercialization partner
for our OGX-011 program,” said Scott Cormack, President and CEO of OncoGenex. “It also allows us
to continue our planned manufacturing readiness activities to ensure that our phase 3 trials
initiate as planned once a partnership for OGX-011 is secured.”
This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy,
nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer,
solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities
laws of any state or jurisdiction.
About OncoGenex Pharmaceuticals
OncoGenex is a biopharmaceutical company committed to the development and commercialization of new
therapies that address unmet needs in the treatment of cancer. OncoGenex has a deep oncology
pipeline, with each product candidate having a distinct mechanism of action and representing a
unique opportunity for cancer drug development. OGX-011, the lead candidate that has completed five
Phase 2 clinical trials in prostate, lung and breast cancers, is designed to inhibit the production
of a specific protein associated with treatment resistance; OGX-427 is in Phase 1 clinical
development; SN2310 has completed the Phase 1 clinical trial; and CSP-9222 and OGX-225 are
currently in pre-clinical development.
OGX-011, OGX-427 and OGX-225 utilize second-generation antisense technology, licensed from Isis
Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ISIS), to effectively target and inhibit production of specific proteins
in tumor cells. OncoGenex and Isis partnered in the successful discovery of OGX-011, OGX-427 and
OGX-225 and with respect to OGX-011, in its initial development. In 2008, OncoGenex and Isis
amended their OGX-011 agreement to provide OncoGenex with sole rights to OGX-011 and sole
responsibility for development and related costs and partnering decisions, subject to financial
obligations to Isis. OncoGenex is also solely responsible for development and related costs and partnering
decisions regarding OGX-427 and OGX-225. Key intellectual property related to OGX-011, OGX-427 and
OGX-225 were discovered by the University of British Columbia and the Vancouver Prostate Centre,
and were exclusively licensed to OncoGenex.