63 people win Lotto 1st prize, 'the highest number ever'

More than 60 have won the first prize in the latest Lotto lottery drawing. With the record number of winners, the first prize was only 419.92 million won (approximately 305,000 U.S. dollars), the second lowest ever.

According to the Korea Lottery Commission under the Economy and Finance Ministry and Donghaeng (Together) Lottery on Sunday, a staggering 63 first-prize winners matched the winning numbers ‘1, 5, 8, 16, 28, 33’ in the 1,128th Lotto drawing conducted on Saturday. This marks the highest number of winners for the Lotto since its publication began in December 2002, surpassing the previous record of 50 first-prize winners at the 1,019th Lotto drawing on June 12, 2022.

The flurry of wins has reduced the payout for the top prize to just over 419.2 million won (305,000 dollars) each, but it didn't break the all-time record. The previous smallest first prize money was 495.3 million won (360,000 dollars) at the May 18, 2013 (546th) drawing with 30 winners.

For the latest top prize, the actual amount of money won after taxes is expected to be around 314 million won per winner. It's important to note that lottery winnings exceeding 300 million won (218,000 dollars) are subject to a significant 33 percent tax, which will significantly reduce the total amount received by the winners.


Do-Hyong Kim dodo@donga.com