Gritstone bio, Inc. announced the appointment of Stephen Webster to its Board of Directors. A veteran finance executive in the biotechnology industry, Mr. Webster has served as an executive for several renowned companies and held key roles in raising capital, business development transactions and operations for over 30 years. The company also announced that Steve Krognes will not stand for re-election at the 2024 Annual Meeting.

Mr. Webster served as the Chief Financial Officer of Spark Therapeutics, a publicly traded gene therapy biotechnology company, from July 2014 until its acquisition by Roche for $4.3 billion in December 2019. He was previously Senior Vice President (SVP) and Chief Financial Officer of Optimer Pharmaceuticals, from July 2012 until its acquisition by Cubist Pharmaceuticals in October 2013. Prior to joining Optimer, Mr. Webster served as SVP and Chief Financial Officer of Adolor Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, from 2008 until its acquisition by Cubist Pharmaceuticals in 2011.

He also served in leadership positions in the investment banking healthcare groups of Broadpoint Capital and PaineWebber Incorporated. In addition to Gritstone, Mr. Webster currently serves on the Board of Directors of Cullinan Therapeutics and NextCure, Inc. He previously served on the Board of Directors of TCR2 Therapeutics until its merger with Adaptimmune. Mr. Webster received an A.B. in Economics from Dartmouth College and an M.B.A. in Finance from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.