“I Was in Shock”: SA Questions Reality As Self-Employed Mum Wins R40 Million Lotto Jackpot

• A self-employed mother from Johannesburg officially claimed her share of nearly R40 million from the R78 million lotto jackpot, with plans to invest in her business and buy a home and car
• The National Lottery is still searching for the second winner who has yet to come forward to claim their R39 million prize from the same draw
• South Africans flooded social media with disbelief and accusations that lottery winners are fake, with many calling the entire system a scam
• Briefly News asked financial expert Fulufhelani Mashapha how people should approach managing sudden wealth

A self-employed mother from Johannesburg has officially stepped forward to claim her life-changing R39,488,838 share of the massive R78 million lotto jackpot from draw number 2551 held on Wednesday, 18 June 2025.

The National Lottery operator Ithuba confirmed that her winning ticket was purchased at a Day and Night Superstore in Johannesburg using a R30 wager with the Quick Pick selection method.

The regular lottery player, who often switches between Quick Pick and manual number selections, described her overwhelming reaction to the win. She plans to secure her family's future by purchasing a home and car while expanding her business with an industrial machine that will take her operations to the next level.

The mother expressed her plans for the windfall, explaining how she intends to continue playing the lottery after this remarkable stroke of luck. Ithuba CEO Charmaine Mabuza congratulated the winner and emphasised how thrilled they are to see a self-employed South African woman's business ambitions flourish thanks to her extraordinary win.

However, the lottery operator is still actively searching for the second winner who has yet to claim their matching prize. All National Lottery winnings are completely tax-free, and winners of more than R50,000 receive complimentary trauma counselling and financial advice from Ithuba.

Briefly News spoke to financial expert Fulufhelani Mashapha for guidance on managing unexpected wealth. She explained:

"A helpful framework is the 50/30/20 rule for managing your winnings: 50% for long-term wealth-building (e.g. investments), 30% for lifestyle and day-to-day needs, 20% for safety nets like emergency savings.

Consider investing in income-generating assets, such as rental property, to support your family’s long-term financial security—while carefully evaluating the risks and ongoing costs involved."

SA refuses to believe the lottery wins

Despite the official announcement on the National Lottery's website, thousands of South Africans expressed serious doubts about the authenticity of these wins, with many flooding comment sections with accusations and conspiracy theories.

@moloantoa_kgopa stated bluntly:

"I don't believe that these winners exist."

@lucky_blanco claimed:

"Since Ithuba got involved, a lot of corruption has happened."

@lindo_lee_nkosi agreed with sceptics, writing:

"Lol, you're not alone, they think we are all stupid... Ghost winners."

@francisca_ndebele suggested the timing was suspicious:

"It's almost month end, of course, we have to recruit more gamblers by pretending not to be scammers."

@prolific_farrakhan_setlhodi joked:

"A family business safely releasing money to a fellow distant member for some winter vacation."

@angela_bianca_mphana simply declared:

"Lotto is a scam."

Dito M. Nhampossa added:

"Good for her. The mistake is the investment part, unless she knows the field. You can't start a business or invest if you don't know the field."

View the post here.

The South African National Lottery is legitimate. It is operated by ITHUBA Holdings, which was awarded an exclusive license on 1 June 2015 to manage the National Lottery for eight years. The lottery is regulated by the National Lotteries Commission (NLC), a public entity established under the Lotteries Act 57 of 1997, as amended, to oversee and ensure the integrity of lottery operations in South Africa.

In May 2025, the NLC awarded the fourth National Lottery license to Sizekhaya Holdings, a consortium led by Moses Tembe and Sandile Zungu.

3 other stories of controversial lottery wins

• Briefly News recently reported on a pensioner from the Western Cape who won R13 million, but South Africans remained divided about whether the win favoured connected individuals.
• A South African player shocked Mzansi after winning R28 million in the PowerBall PLUS jackpot, though many questioned the legitimacy of such massive payouts.
• A Free State woman who won R13.9 million left South Africans frustrated after she carelessly spent her entire fortune, though some revealed she won again afterwards.

Hilary Sekgota, Human Interest HOD at Briefly News, contributed to this article.

Source: Briefly News