Merriman Capital Announces Sponsorship of Sutter Gold on OTCQX

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Merriman Capital, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Merriman Holdings, Inc. (OTCQX: MERR), today announced that it will serve as the Principal American Liaison (PAL) for Sutter Gold Mining Inc. as it begins trading on OTCQX(R).

Sutter Gold is a growth-oriented exploration and development company preparing to become a North American gold producer. The Company announced today that it is now trading on the OTC market's highest tier, OTCQX.

OTCQX distinguishes the best companies traded over-the-counter (OTC) from more than 9,000 securities traded on the OTCBB and OTC Link that are not required to meet any financial standards or undergo a qualitative review.

Spencer Grimes, Head of Capital Markets Services at Merriman Capital, stated: 'Sutter Gold is an ideal candidate for OTCQX as they expand their U.S.-based operations. We look forward to helping the Company increase its visibility among American investors.'

'Joining OTCQX is an important milestone for Sutter Gold,' said Leanne Baker, President and CEO of Sutter Gold Mining Inc. 'Our flagship project, the Lincoln Project in Amador County, California, is advancing towards production in 2012. Trading on OTCQX will enhance the ability of the U.S. investment community to trade our shares as we bring online the first commercial gold mine in California's historic Mother Lode in more than 50 years.'


About Merriman Capital, Inc.

Merriman Capital, Inc. is an investment banking firm providing equity and options execution services, market making, and differentiated research for high growth companies. We also provide capital raising, advisory, and M&A services. Merriman Capital, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Merriman Holdings, Inc. (OTCQX: MERR) and is the leading investment banking firm for OTCQX companies. For more information, please go to www.merrimanco.com.

Merriman Capital, Inc. is a registered broker-dealer and member of The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) www.finra.org and the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) www.sipc.org/contact.cfm.


About Sutter Gold Mining Inc.

Sutter Gold is a growth-oriented exploration and development company preparing to become a North American gold producer. The Company has two projects: the Lincoln Project located in Amador County, California and the Santa Theresa Project located in the Northern Baja region of Mexico. Currently, the Company's primary focus is the evaluation and development of the Lincoln Project, beginning with the shallow portion of the Lincoln-Comet ore zone of the Lincoln Project, located on the California Mother Lode Gold Belt. The Lincoln-Comet and Keystone zones have a NI 43-101 compliant Indicated Resource estimate (completed in February 2008) of 612,400 tonnes (673,600 tons) grading 11.3 g/t Au (0.33 oz/ton) containing 223,000 ounces of gold and Inferred Resources of 2,161,700 tonnes (2,377,900 tons) grading 6.6 g/t Au (0.19 oz/ton) containing 458,900 ounces of gold.

Sutter Gold currently controls approximately 3.6 miles of the Mother Lode of Amador County, with 90% of the property still unexplored. Potential exists both at depth and along strike of the known mineralized zones on both the footwall and hanging wall. The 120-mile long Mother Lode Gold Belt produced over 13 million ounces of gold historically with 7.9 million ounces originating from the 10-mile long segment between Jackson and Plymouth where the Lincoln Project is strategically located. Properties under the Company's control include seven historic mines with significant historic gold production totaling over 3.5 million ounces or 27% of the historic gold production from the Mother Lode. Historic mines located north and south of the Lincoln Project in the Jackson to Plymouth segment of the Mother Lode success fully mined gold to depths of 4,500 and 6,300 feet, respectively.

In Mexico, Sutter Gold holds the rights to the geologically similar, high-grade El Alamo district of northern Baja, where historic mining to the water table produced mined grades of 30 to 60 g/t gold. Initial exploration with its joint-venture partner, Premier Gold, has demonstrated the extension of high-grade veins.


About OTCQX

The OTCQX marketplace is the premier tier of the U.S. OTC market. Investor-focused companies use the quality-controlled OTCQX platform to offer investors transparent trading, superior information, and easy access through their regulated U.S. broker-dealers. The innovative OTCQX platform offers companies and their shareholders a level of marketplace services formerly available only on a U.S. stock exchange. For more information and to view a full list of OTCQX companies, visit www.otcqx.com.



Note to Investors

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements based on our current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties. This release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of offers to buy any securities of the Company. Forward-looking statements in this release are based on information available to us as of the date hereof. Our actual results may differ materially from those stated or implied in such forward-looking statements, due to risks and uncertainties associated with our business, which include the risk factors disclosed in our Form 10-K/A filed on April 28, 2011 and our Form 10-Q filed on November14, 2011. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding our expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future and can be identified by forward-looking words such as 'anticipate,' 'believe,' 'could,' 'estimate,' 'expect,' 'intend,' 'may,' 'should,' and 'would' or similar words. We assume no obligation to update the information included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The Form 10-K/A filed on April 28, 2011and 10-Q filed on November 14, 2011, together with this press release and the financial information contained herein, are available on our website, www.merrimanco.com. Please click on 'Investor Relations.'

Merriman Holdings, Inc.

CONTACT: CONTACT: Spencer Grimes, Merriman Capital, Inc. +1-415-262-1342,

or Howard Bernstein, Chief Compliance Officer, Merriman Capital, Inc.,

+1-415-262-1377

Web site: http://www.merrimanco.com/

http://www.otcqx.com/

http://www.mcfco.com/