A remarkable run of high Powerball jackpots boosted ticket sales and helped generate a record $434 million for the community in the past financial year, says the New Zealand Lotteries Commission.

Returns to the community were up 15% on the previous year due to an unprecedented $1.71 billion of sales in the year ended June 30.

Lotto NZ chief executive Jason Delamore said there was a $50m “must-be-won” draw in June and two other draws of $30m or more.

“Our increased ticket sales over the past year were heavily influenced by the number of significant Powerball jackpots.

“These big jackpots inspire ‘Have you got your ticket?’ conversations between friends, family and workmates across the country, resulting in more ticket sales to people who might class themselves as an occasional or casual player.

“This is line with our strategy of encouraging many New Zealanders to play our games but to spend only a little.”

Delamore said every dollar of Lotto NZ’s profit goes to the Lottery Grants Board for distribution back into the community.

“I’m delighted that 3171 organisations throughout New Zealand benefited from funding in the past year across a diversity of areas, including the Mental Health Foundation, the Hawke’s Bay Biodiversity Trust and [the] SuperGrans SuperSkills community volunteer group.”

The Powerball jackpot was struck 17 times during the reporting period, creating 23 instant multi-millionaires, with another 41 New Zealanders becoming millionaires across Lotto NZ’s stable of games, including Lotto First Division, Strike and Instant Kiwi.

“Highlights included a $37m win by a Paraparaumu couple, and of course the $50m must-be-won draw that ended up being split [between] seven winners.”

Delamore said the record result was achieved with both community outcomes and responsible gambling considerations at the top of mind.

“We’ve been working hard to make sure our customers stay safe when playing our games, with initiatives in the past year including progressing our strategy to minimise harm to Māori and Pacific communities, implementation of online harm analytics tools, and ongoing training and education for our retailers and customers.

“Despite the increased sales, the available harm data that we monitor and report shows no discernible lift in harm,” said Delamore.

Lotto NZ’s reputation as an enduring and trusted Kiwi brand was further reinforced through it leaping up five places to seventh overall on the 2024 Kantar NZ Corporate Reputation Index.

“Our improved ranking reflects the trust placed in by us by our customers and communities. We have a really strong legacy, having returned more than $b to communities since 1987.”

Lotto NZ players have helped return a record $434 million to the NZ community.

Delamore said the team at Lotto NZ is also looking forward to delivering a major technology transformation project to replace its core gaming system in June 2025.

“Much of the project is focused on upgrading our background systems so we can deliver innovative new games and experiences in coming years. However, our players will notice some immediate improvements in-store and online when the change goes live in about seven months’ time.”

In the past financial year, 25% of Lotto NZ revenue was transferred to the Lottery Grants Board, 54% went back to players in prizes, 12% was paid in taxes, duties and levies, 5% was allocated for operating costs and 4% went to retailer commissions and MyLotto transaction fees.

In the 12 months ending 30 June 2024, Lotto NZ:

– Transferred $434m to the Lottery Grants Board (up from $376m in FY23).

– Paid out $924m in prizes (up from $812m in FY23).

– Contributed $200m in taxes, duties and levies (up from $179m in FY23) – meaning when coupled with the profits returned to the Lottery Grants Board, returns to the Crown amounted to $634m.

– Kept operating expenses 2% below budget at $97.9m, while investing substantially in a major technological transformation due to go live in 2025.

– Saw an increase in both retail and digital sales. 54% of sales were made over the counter at Lotto NZ’s 1178 retailers and 46% through the MyLotto app and website.

Lotto NZ’s FY24 Integrated Report can be found here.