Thousands of Kiwis are dreaming of what they’d do with a spare $40 million as Lotto’s highest Powerball jackpot in more than a year looms this Saturday.
But for anyone who wins, one of the first and hardest decisions isn’t what to spend the money on – it’s who to tell about it.
Lotto NZ’s Winners Booklet reveals secrecy is a major concern for many winners.
“It’s very important to think carefully about this as soon as you find out about your win,” the booklet says.
“Be careful who you tell. The more people you do tell, the greater the chances of others finding out.”
The organisation surveyed some of its past winners about who they shared the news with.
They found 19% of winners only told their partners, 31% told their immediate family, 8% told everyone, and 5% kept it completely to themselves.
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Jackpot hits $40 million
Powerball rolled over to a mind-boggling $40 million after no one struck the winning numbers in Wednesday night’s draw.
The prize pool has surged to a level not seen since August last year, when an Auckland family took home $44.67 million—the largest Powerball prize ever won on a single ticket.
The biggest overall Lotto win remains $50 million, split between two players in 2020.
Lotto NZ’s Head of Corporate Communications Will Hine says the soaring jackpot is likely to spark excitement across the country.
“We know New Zealanders all around the country will be dreaming about what they would do if they won $40 million this weekend.”
While Powerball remains unstruck, four players from Hamilton, Carterton, Lower Hutt and Invercargill will be celebrating after they each won $250,000 with Lotto First Division on Wednesday.
The winning tickets were sold at Gordonton Superette in Hamilton, New World Hutt City in Lower Hutt, Collingwood Foodcentre in Invercargill and on MyLotto to a player from Carterton.
Strike Four was won by a player from Auckland who takes home $200,000. The ticket was sold at Pacific Superette in Auckland.
The Powerball draw takes place live on TVNZ 1 and TVNZ+ at 8pm on Saturday night.
