Founders added to GDXJ index, starts drilling at Antino

Mr. Colin Padget reports FOUNDERS METALS ADDED TO GDXJ INDEX; COMMENCES DRILLING AT ANTINO NORTH Founders Metals Inc. has been included in the MVIS Global Junior Gold Miners Index (MVGDXJ), the underlying benchmark for the VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ). Separately, the company reports the commencement of diamond drilling at Antino North on its Antino gold project in southeastern Suriname, with a second rig now being mobilized to the area. Highlights GDXJ index inclusion: Founders Metals added to the MVIS Global Junior Gold Miners Index in the Q1 2026 quarterly review, triggering passive buying from index-tracking ETFs (exchange-traded funds). Maiden drilling at Antino North: First diamond drill rig now turning where fieldwork has delineated 10 parallel gold-bearing structures across a four-kilometre area. Second rig mobilizing: A second diamond drill rig is being mobilized to test the multikilometre historical auger gold anomaly in the east of Antino North. Surface results: Previously reported channel sampling at Antino North returned 20.0 metres of 2.07 grams per tonne Au (gold) including 7.0 m of 5.05 g/t Au. Auger sampling progress: Founders has collected over 4,000 auger samples to date in 2026. Colin Padget, president and chief executive officer, commented: "Our inclusion in the GDXJ index is a meaningful milestone for Founders and reflects the market's growing recognition of what we are building in the Guiana Shield and brings new passive and institutional capital into the stock. "On the ground, we are equally excited to be now drilling at Antino North. The shear zones we've mapped in the northwest offer numerous compelling first drill targets where this year's surface work has returned high-grade grab and channel results in geology similar to Upper Antino. With the scale of the new Antino North targets, we are also mobilizing a second rig that will initially test the large historical auger anomaly in the east. We see Antino North as having the potential to become a second centre of gravity within our expanding gold camp." About Founders Metals Inc. Founders Metals is a Canadian gold exploration company building a district-scale gold camp in southeastern Suriname. The company controls a 102,360-hectare contiguous land package in the Guiana Shield -- the largest uninterrupted package of highly prospective greenstone belt geology in the region. Founders is backed by strategic partnerships with Gold Fields and B2Gold, and is executing one of the most active exploration programs in the global junior gold sector. The company is committed to responsible exploration, strong community engagement and disciplined capital allocation as it advances Suriname's next major gold camp. Quality assurance and control Samples were analyzed at FILAB Suriname, a Bureau Veritas-certified laboratory in Paramaribo, Suriname (a commercial certified laboratory under ISO 9001:2015). Samples are crushed to 75 per cent passing 2.35-millimetre screen, riffle split (700 grams) and pulverized to 85 per cent passing 88 micrometres. Samples were analyzed using a 50 g fire assay (50 g aliquot) with an atomic absorption (AA) finish. For samples that return assay values over 5.0 grams per tonne (g/t), another cut was taken from the original pulp and fire assayed with a gravimetric finish. Founders Metals inserts blanks and certified reference standards in the sample sequence for quality control. External QA/QC (quality assurance/quality control) checks are performed at ALS Global Laboratories (geochemistry division) in Lima, Peru (an ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accredited facility). A secure chain of custody is maintained in transporting and storing of all samples. Drill intervals with visible gold are assayed using metallic screening. Rock chip samples from outcrop/bedrock are selective by nature and may not be representative of the mineralization hosted on the project. Qualified person The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Michael Dufresne, MSc, PGeol, PGeo, an independent qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. We seek Safe Harbor.