NewAmsterdam Pharma Appoints Mark C. McKenna and Wouter Joustra to Board

NAARDEN, The Netherlands and MIAMI, July 18, 2024 – NewAmsterdam Pharma Company N.V. (Nasdaq: NAMS), a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical firm, announced key changes to its Board of Directors. Mark C. McKenna and Wouter Joustra have been appointed as temporary non-executive directors, filling vacant spots until their expected confirmation at the next general meeting of shareholders. Concurrently, Sander Slootweg has stepped down from his role on the Board, effective July 16, 2024.

Chief Executive Officer Michael Davidson, M.D., expressed enthusiasm about the new appointments, emphasizing the strategic advantages that both McKenna and Joustra bring to NewAmsterdam. Davidson highlighted McKenna’s extensive history in the pharmaceutical industry and Joustra’s expertise in public market investments and life sciences.

Mark C. McKenna has over two decades of experience in the pharmaceutical sector. He is the founder, Chairman, and CEO of Mirador Therapeutics, Inc., and holds positions on the boards of Apogee Therapeutics, Inc. and Spyre Therapeutics, Inc. McKenna also collaborates as a venture partner at Arch Venture Partners and an advisor at Fairmount Funds. His previous roles include President, CEO, and Chairman of Prometheus Biosciences, Inc., which Merck & Co., Inc. acquired in June 2023 for approximately $10.8 billion. Before that, he was a corporate officer at Bausch Health, overseeing Salix Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and had a long tenure at Bausch + Lomb. McKenna was recognized as Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year in 2023 and holds degrees from Arizona State University and Azusa Pacific University.

Expressing his excitement about joining NewAmsterdam, McKenna believes that the company is well-positioned to impact the cardiovascular disease (CVD) landscape significantly, especially with several Phase 3 trial results imminent. He looks forward to working closely with the management and the Board to advance the company's mission.

Wouter Joustra, with his extensive experience in executive leadership and life sciences investment, also joined the NewAmsterdam Board. Joustra is a General Partner at Forbion, a global life sciences venture capital firm. At Forbion, he handles deal origination, portfolio management, and divestment strategies, particularly focusing on late-stage life sciences companies. Before joining Forbion in 2019, Joustra was a Senior Trader and Executive Board member at Kempen, a European boutique investment bank. His responsibilities included managing the bank's trading portfolio and overseeing equity capital markets transactions.

Joustra has served on the boards of several companies, including Gyroscope Therapeutics Holdings plc, VectivBio AG, Aiolos Bio, Inc., and Forbion European Acquisition Corporation. Currently, he holds board positions at VectorY Therapeutics, Beacon Therapeutics, and enGene Holdings Inc. He earned his M.Sc. in Business Administration and B.Sc. in International Business and Management from the University of Groningen.

Joustra shared his enthusiasm for joining the Board during a pivotal time in NewAmsterdam’s history. He emphasized the potential of obicetrapib in treating elevated LDL-C and CVD, hoping to contribute significantly to the company's goals alongside the team at Forbion.

NewAmsterdam Pharma (Nasdaq: NAMS) is focused on developing treatments for metabolic diseases, particularly where current therapies are inadequate. The company is conducting multiple Phase 3 studies on obicetrapib, a once-daily CETP inhibitor, as an adjunct to statin therapy for patients with elevated LDL-C. The company's mission is to provide a safe, well-tolerated, and effective LDL-lowering therapy to address significant unmet needs in patient care.