For Immediate Release

Contact:
Ron Bentsur, Keryx Biopharmaceuticals
ron@keryxbiopharm.com
Tel: 972-2-541-2700, Fax: 972-2-541-2701

Keryx Biopharmaceuticals Raises $8.8 Million in Private Placement
$1 Billion Drug Compound Expected to Enter Late Stage Clinical Trials in Third Quarter 2000

January 25, 2000: Jerusalem, Israel and New York, NY: KERYX BIOPHARMACEUTICALS INC., a drug development company incorporated in Delaware, announced today that it successfully completed an $8.8 million private placement of its Convertible Preferred Stock. Investors in the placement included a number of significant institutions and a select group of private investors. Leading the placement were Paramount Capital, Inc. and Leumi & Co. Underwriters.

KERYX intends to use the proceeds of this offering to continue the clinical development of its lead compound KRX-101 and the various compounds derived from its KinAceTM core technology, a technology that harnesses the power of genomics for rapid drug discovery. KERYX expects to file an IND with the FDA in the second quarter of 2000 to begin a pivotal Phase II/III clinical trial of KRX-101 for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy, a condition with a market potential of approximately $1 billion. The company also plans to file an IND this year for a Phase I/II clinical trial of KRX-123, for the treatment of hormone refractory prostate cancer, a fatal condition for which no effective treatment currently exists. This compound is the first of over 10 compounds generated by the KinAce™ technology for the modulation of kinases involved in cellular signal transduction.

KERYX CEO Dr. Morris Laster said: "The successful raising of $8.8 million provides KERYX with the resources to aggressively pursue the development of the various compounds and technologies in its pipeline. KERYX's strategy of combining the in-licensing of late stage compounds and the development of a powerful core technology promises to significantly increase the future value of the company."

ABOUT KERYX
KERYX is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development and commercialization of clinical compounds and core technologies for the life sciences.

Incorporated in Delaware, with an R&D center located in Jerusalem, Israel, KERYX works with strategic partners, research institutions and investors throughout the US, Israel and Europe. The company is currently developing KRX-101, a late-stage compound for the treatment of diabetic complications; KinAce™, a core drug discovery platform; KRX-123, an early-stage compound derived from the KinAce™ technology; and a novel treatment of cancer based on genomically imprinted genes.

Except for historical information, all of the expectations and assumptions contained in the foregoing are forward-looking statements involving risks and uncertainties. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe harbor" for certain forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this release are subject to certain risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from current expectations. Among the factors which could affect the Company's actual results and could cause results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements contained herein are: the timely commencement and success of the Company's clinical trials and other research endeavors, delays in receiving FDA or other regulatory approvals, the development of competing therapies and/or technologies, the terms of any future strategic alliances, the possible need for additional capital, and any additional factors described from time to time in the Company's periodic reports and any prospectus describing the Company's securities.