Velan Inc.: 2012 Normal Course Issuer Bid

MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwire - Oct. 17, 2012) - Velan Inc. (the "Corporation") (TSX:VLN) announced today that it has received approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX"), to proceed with a normal course issuer bid. Under the bid, the Corporation may purchase up to 100,000 Subordinate Voting Shares (the "Shares") of the Corporation, representing approximately 1.56% of the issued Shares of such class as at October 12, 2012. The average daily trading volume for the 6-month period preceding October 1, 2012 is 2,652 Shares. In accordance with TSX rules, the Corporation may repurchase up to 1,000 Shares on a daily basis. The bid will commence on October 22, 2012 and terminate on October 21, 2013 or on such earlier date as the Corporation may complete its purchases pursuant to the bid. The Shares will be purchased on behalf of the Corporation by a registered broker through the facilities of TSX or alternative Canadian trading platforms. The price paid for the Shares will be the market price at the time of the acquisition, and the number of Shares purchased and the timing of any such purchases will be determined by the Corporation. All Shares purchased by the Corporation will be cancelled. As at October 12, 2012, the Corporation had 6,388,501 Shares outstanding. During the past 12 months, 219,600 Shares were purchased by the Corporation at a weighted average price of $11.74.

The Corporation also announced that it has renewed an automatic share purchase plan with a broker in order to facilitate repurchases of its Shares under its normal course issuer bid. Under the Corporation's automatic share purchase plan, the Corporation's broker may repurchase common shares under the normal course issuer bid at any time including, without limitation, when the Corporation would ordinarily not be permitted to due to regulatory restrictions or self-imposed blackout periods. Purchases will be made by the Corporation's broker based upon the parameters prescribed by the TSX and applicable Canadian securities laws and the terms of the parties' written agreement. The automatic share purchase plan has been reviewed by the TSX. The automatic share purchase plan will be renewed effective as of October 22, 2012.

The directors of the Corporation have concluded that purchases of up to 100,000 of the issued and outstanding Shares may be an appropriate and desirable use of the Corporation's available funds and, therefore, would be in the best interest of the Corporation. As a result of such purchases, the number of issued Shares will be decreased and, consequently, the proportionate share interest of all remaining shareholders will be increased on a pro rata basis.

About Velan

Velan Inc. (www.velan.com) is a world-leading manufacturer of industrial valves with sales of $437 million in its last reported fiscal year. The company employs over 2,000 people and has manufacturing plants in nine countries. Velan Inc. is a public company with its shares listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol VLN.