Funding Will Support Completion of INT-747 Phase II Clinical Trials and

                    Acceleration of Pipeline Development

                  Dr. Kenneth D. Noonan Appointed Chairman



    NEW YORK, July 29 /EMWNews/ -- Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a

clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutics for the

treatment of chronic fibrotic and metabolic diseases, today announced the

completion of a $25 million equity financing by Genextra S.p.A. This

financing was in lieu of the previously contemplated $20.5 million second

tranche investment under the Genextra-led $41 million financing announced

in May 2006.



    Mark Pruzanski, M.D., Intercept's founder, President and CEO,

commented, "This financing is recognition of the progress we have made with

our lead compound INT-747, as well as recent exciting milestones achieved

in our preclinical programs. Genextra's strong backing will enable us to

complete our Phase II clinical trials while continuing to advance our

pipeline of internally discovered novel FXR and TGR5 agonists."



    Patient enrollment is well underway in three Phase II clinical trials

of INT-747, Intercept's first-in-class farnesoid X receptor (FXR) agonist.

The clinical program of INT-747 consists of two studies in patients with

primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), a chronic autoimmune liver disease, and a

third study in Type 2 diabetic patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver

disease (NAFLD). INT-747 has been granted orphan drug designation by the

U.S. Food & Drug Administration for the treatment of PBC.



    In association with the financing, Kenneth D. Noonan, Ph.D., Partner at

L.E.K. Consulting LLP, has been named Non-Executive Chairman of Intercept's

Board of Directors. In this capacity he succeeds James Mervis who remains a

director of the company.



    Dr. Noonan remarked, "Intercept has assembled a strong team that is

making significant progress with novel therapeutic approaches that exploit

exciting recent discoveries of the key roles played by bile acids as potent

signaling molecules. I am very pleased to be named Non-Executive Chairman

and look forward to working with the company."



    "This has been a great 24 months for Intercept and we are happy to have

had the opportunity to increase our investment position substantially,"

stated Paolo Fundaro, Genextra's Chief Financial Officer and Intercept

director. "With the clinical trials gaining momentum and the expansion of

the pipeline, we feel that the company is entering into an exciting new

phase of value building."



    Intercept has raised $50 million since its founding. Significant

investors in the company include Genextra and Visium Asset Management.

    About Intercept Pharmaceuticals



    Intercept is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on

discovering and developing small molecule drugs for the treatment of

chronic fibrotic and metabolic diseases. The company's scientists and

affiliated researchers have published extensively on the role of bile acid

signaling via the nuclear hormone receptor FXR and the G protein-coupled

receptor TGR5. These receptors are key mediators of energy homeostasis and

are involved in maintaining integral functions of the liver, intestine and

kidney, organs exposed to bile acid flux. The company's chemocentric

discovery programs are based on proprietary expertise in the rational

design and synthesis of natural and synthetic small molecule derivatives

targeting FXR, TGR5 and other related targets. For more information on

Intercept, please visit the company's website at http://www.interceptpharma.com.



    About Genextra



    Genextra is a Milan-based holding company with majority investments in

several biotechnology companies founded on intellectual property generated

in Italy. Genextra's investment focus is in diseases related to aging,

metabolic disorders and oncology.