Mr. Colin Padget reports

FOUNDERS METALS MAPS GEOMETRY OF HIGH-GRADE GOLD AT MARIA GERALDA: HITS 30.0 M OF 4.64 G/T AU AND 12.0 M OF 10.57 G/T AU IN DEEP AUGER DRILLING

Founders Metals Inc. has released results from its deep auger drilling program at the Maria Geralda target within the Antino gold project in southeastern Suriname. The 37-hole deep auger program has identified a coherent, high-grade gold shoot -- a concentrated zone of mineralization within a larger 600-metre drill-defined gold-bearing structure -- directly coincident with the company's previously reported diamond drill intercept of 22.5 metres (m) of 11.88 grams per tonne (g/t) gold (Au) in hole MG003 (announced June 24, 2025).

Highlights

• High-grade deep auger intercepts in core of gold zone including: 30.0 m of 4.64 g/t Au (MGAD041):
  • 12.0 m of 10.57 g/t Au (MGAD059);
  • 14.0 m of 7.52 g/t Au (MGAD056);
  • 15.0 m of 4.83 g/t Au (MGAD055).
• Additional significant deep auger intercepts include:
  • 16.0 m of 4.35 g/t Au (MGAD043);
  • 18.0 m of 3.56 g/t Au (MGAD057);
  • 20.0 m of 2.88 g/t Au (MGAD058);
  • 13.0 m of 3.68 g/t Au (MGAD049).
• Target remains open at depth with 20 deep auger holes ending in mineralization at the 30 m auger limit;
• New auger data defines shoot orientation, plunge direction and dimensions, providing a precise targeting framework for follow-up diamond drilling down plunge into untested bedrock;
• Directly applicable to other emerging targets including Van Gogh, Da Vinci and Parbo;
• The company plans to expand the auger grid to test a potential second shoot followed by diamond drilling in early Q4 2026.

Colin Padget, president and chief executive officer, commented: "This deep auger program has delivered exactly what it was designed to do -- provide a three-dimensional picture of how high-grade gold is organized within the Maria Geralda system. The results show that the nearly 12 g/t Au interval over 22.5 m in MG003 is not an isolated occurrence but sits within a geometrically coherent, plunging high-grade zone. Understanding this geometry is critical for targeting across Antino -- it tells us where to drill and, just as importantly, where not to drill. The zone plunges steeply to the west-southwest within a structure that our diamond drilling has shown carries gold over more than a kilometre of strike. This style of high-grade shoot within an extensive structural host is a well-recognized geometry in orogenic gold systems, and we look forward to testing this shoot into bedrock with our next phase of diamond drilling in early Q4."

The auger data defines a plunging shoot within a west-dipping structural host. The upper contact of the mineralized zone strikes north-south and dips approximately 36 degrees to the west, deepening from 10 m in the northeast to 28 m in the southwest. The highest-grade gold plunges more steeply at 56 to 60 degrees toward the west-southwest within this envelope -- meaning grades intensify with depth. The shoot footprint at the greater than or equal to 1.0 g/t Au cut-off measures 18 m along plunge by nine m along strike with a stable 2:1 aspect ratio and cumulative grade curves show no sign of diminishing at the 30 m auger depth limit. All current mineralization is in saprolite; the bedrock beneath the shoot has not been tested.

Next steps

The company is expanding the auger grid to test five shallow gold intersections that may represent a second shoot or a near-surface zone adjacent to the main shoot. Maria Geralda is easily accessible for diamond drilling from the company's existing road network, and Founders aims to return with diamond drills for bedrock follow-up in early Q4 2026.

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 executing one of the most active exploration programs in the global junior gold sector and is backed by a strategic partnership with Gold Fields Ltd. 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 collected at one m intervals from vertical auger holes drilled to 30 m depth in saprolite using a five-inch diameter Little Beaver deep auger. Each interval was homogenized and split: one-half was washed and sieved to retain coarse rock chips for geological logging, and the other submitted to the laboratory. Samples were submitted to 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 g) 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 10.0 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.

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.

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