Greytown and Warkworth $19m Lotto winners could double their money

The winners of last night's huge Lotto draw could double their money over the next few decades if they play their cards right.

The Lotto Powerball prize was split in half last night with the monster $38m prize shared between tickets sold in Greytown and Warkworth.

A wealth advisor says it's possible the winners could put the money in the bank and comfortably live off it for the rest of their lives, but it wouldn't be wise.

"If anything was to happen to the banks, your money would be just solely there, so it's a risk," said head of fixed income at Hobson Wealth Partners, Mark Fowler.

"We would want to have that diversified."

If the money was properly invested in a range of places, the lucky winners could potentially turn the figure into $31 million each over the next 20 years.

These projections are based off 4.9 per cent return, 2 per cent drawings, and 2 per cent inflation. Photo / Hobson Wealth Partners

This was assuming two per cent drawings, a return of 4.9 per cent and inflation of two per cent.

Over a good period of time, Fowler said the winners could expect to double the money "and then some".

It all depended on circumstances and what the winners wanted to do with their money.

"We have a lot of people who sell businesses or come into money through winning Lotto or inheritance," Fowler said.

"We work out what your circumstances are ... our specialist skill is looking at the client's needs.

"It's quite daunting for a lot of people, particularly if they haven't dealt with large quantities of money before.

"[We would] try to invest that money across a spread of different asset classes."

Fowler said the winners could easily spend half of the money in a celebratory spree, and still have plenty to live off.

"The thing with $19 million is it's a real luxury. You could quite comfortably spend half of it and still be left with a decent amount of money."

Typically Hobson Wealth Partners dealt with people who had come into an amount of money between $500,000 and $5 million.

Those people had to plan more carefully how to handle their money, but $19 million left quite a bit of wiggle room.

"Look, I think first and foremost you want to enjoy it, because it's quite an amazing result.

"After the dust has settled we would certainly advise you to go out, sit down and come and see a financial advisor."