What Dutch Postcode Lottery does

The Dutch Postcode Lottery (Postcode Loterij N.V.) is a Netherlands-based charitable lottery operator founded in 1989 and headquartered in Amsterdam. It runs a subscription-based lottery in which participants play using their Dutch residential postcode; prizes are distributed at the postcode level so that winners share within defined geographic zones. The operator has accumulated a participant base of over 3 million active subscribers — approximately one in four Dutch adults — built up over more than three decades of recurring direct-debit subscription billing across multiple price tiers (Plus and Premium), with subscribers able to hold up to eight lots per month.

The business model is straightforward subscription lottery economics: monthly recurring ticket revenue, of which a contractually guaranteed minimum 40% is distributed to charitable causes. In 2025 the operator contributed €378 million to 174 beneficiary organizations (up from €347 million to 147 organizations in 2024), and paid out €346.5 million in prizes. Revenue mechanics are therefore: ticket subscriptions (B2C retail) minus prize payouts minus operating costs, with the residual distributed to charities. Customer acquisition and engagement run through a multi-channel platform including a dedicated TV show (Postcode Loterij Live), mobile app, web portal, and door-to-door sales, supported by long-term partnerships with major Dutch consumer brands such as Albert Heijn and Unilever.

The Dutch Postcode Lottery is the largest brand within Novamedia's Postcode Lottery Group, which also operates parallel charitable lotteries in Sweden, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Norway. The Dutch entity itself operates under a gambling license issued by the Dutch Gambling Authority (Kansspelautoriteit) and absorbed the VriendenLoterij and BankGiro Loterij brands in a 2021 consolidation. The disclosed technology stack is conventional marketing and analytics tooling (Google Analytics, Firebase, Selligent) with no proprietary AI/ML capabilities or disclosed data assets.

Name

Dutch Postcode Lottery

Legal name

Postcode Loterij N.V.

Website

https://postcodeloterij.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Amsterdam-based charitable lottery founded in 1989, operating a subscription-based postcode lottery with over 3 million Dutch participants. Distributes at least 40% of ticket revenue to 174 charitable causes, contributing a record €378 million to good causes in 2025.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Lottery Services

NAICS

Gambling Industries (7132), Other Gambling Industries (713290)

akta.pro primary industry

Lottery Operators (Government & Private Licensed) (MPAEAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Draw-Based Lottery Management (Number Games, Keno as Lottery) (MPAEAFAE), Digital Lottery & iLottery Platforms (Web/App) (MPAEAFAD), Lottery Beneficiary/Fund Administration & Grant Management Services (MPAEAFAN)

Keywords

• Charitable lottery service
• Postcode lottery draws
• Lottery subscription
• Charity fundraising gaming
• Community lottery prizes

Headquarters

HQ city

Amsterdam

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Others, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Lottery Subscription Revenue: The Postcode Loterij generates revenue through recurring monthly lottery participation fees charged to subscribers. Participants purchase lottery tickets (lots) linked to their Dutch postcode, with three subscription tiers offering different prize structures. Revenue is collected via direct debit on a recurring monthly basis.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Dutch Postcode Lottery (Nationale Postcode Loterij) operates a state-licensed, subscription-based charity lottery in the Netherlands in which participants play using their home postcode as the lottery unit. The lottery is run as a recurring membership, with draws broadcast on national television, and more than 40% of gross proceeds distributed each year to charitable organisations working in humanitarian, environmental, and social causes.

Product overview

The Dutch Postcode Lottery (Postcode Loterij) is a state-licensed charitable lottery offering a tiered subscription-based product. The core product is the Postcode Loterij itself — a monthly draw using participants' Dutch postcodes as ticket numbers. It operates three subscription tiers: the base Postcode Lot (€16/draw), Plus-abonnement (€18.50/draw) adding a postcode-level prize tier, and Premium-abonnement (€21/draw) adding a further premium postcode prize tier. The lottery offers 14 draws per year, special Kanjer prize draws with point-based allocation, and the flagship annual Postcode Loterij Miljoenenjacht TV game show with multi-million euro prizes. Beyond the lottery itself, the company operates a mobile App (iOS/Android), an online participant portal (Mijn Postcode Loterij), and runs the 'Geniet van 't Goede' annual gift card campaign in partnership with Albert Heijn and Unilever. The sister product VriendenLoterij shares the same participant administration. All products are underpinned by a charitable mission — minimum 40% of ticket revenue funds over 150 good causes in the Netherlands and internationally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Plus: Premium subscription tier offering extra chances to win exclusive prizes including 10 years of €25,000 per year or adventurous world trips.
• Premium

Products and services

• Postcode Loterij (Dutch Postcode Lottery) recurring subscription A subscription-based charity lottery sold to individual Dutch consumers, in which players are entered via their home postcode for periodic draws (including monthly and special draws) broadcast on national television; more than 40% of proceeds are distributed to charitable organisations annually.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over €8.4 billion donated to charitable causes since 1989
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor, flagship and core.

• Nakanyale Vocational Training Centre (Namibia)minorOthers · 23 December 2025A welding training program at the Nakanyale Vocational Training Centre in Outapi, Namibia, was funded by the Post Code Lottery from Germany, with equipment donated by the German Embassy and support from Intercultural Relations, WeldNAM, NIMT, and GSI Namibia.
• Albert HeijnflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 September 2025Albert Heijn has been a key strategic partner in the 'Geniet van 't Goede' campaign for 12 consecutive years. Albert Heijn provides shelf space and promotional materials for over 850 vegetarian products that participants can purchase with the €15 gift card. Albert Heijn also supports the campaign through its online platform (ah.nl) and AH app, and is committed to expanding its sustainable and vegetarian product assortment as part of its broader sustainability goals for a more sustainable food system.
• UnileverflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 September 2025Unilever has partnered with the Postcode Loterij for 12 years in the 'Geniet van 't Goede' campaign. Unilever provides vegetarian product solutions through brands such as Knorr, Unox, and Conimex, contributing recipes and meal kits. Unilever's sustainability agenda focuses on developing vegetarian products, promoting regenerative agriculture, and reducing food waste, aligning with the campaign's environmental impact goals.
• Blonk ConsultantscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Blonk Consultants provides independent sustainability impact measurement for the 'Geniet van 't Goede' campaign, calculating CO2 savings using Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) methodology across the entire production chain of vegetarian meal options offered in the campaign.
• Postcode Lottery Group (Duitsland, Zweden, Noorwegen, Verenigd Koninkrijk)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024The Postcode Lottery Group comprises the Dutch Postcode Loterij along with sister lotteries in Germany, Sweden, Norway, and the United Kingdom. Together they form the world's largest charitable lottery donor, collectively donating €1 billion annually and €15 billion since 1989 to good causes. The group shares best practices, participant data for analysis (on a protected platform), and operates under the Novamedia holding company.
• Holding Nationale Goede Doelen Loterijen N.V.coreOthers · 1 January 2024The Postcode Loterij N.V. and VriendenLoterij N.V. together form Holding Nationale Goede Doelen Loterijen N.V. (KvK 34208105), which also encompasses the merged BankGiro Loterij. The holding is owned by Novamedia and falls under the Postcode Lottery Group.
• NovamediacoreOthers · 1 January 2024Novamedia is the holding company that owns the Postcode Lottery Group (including the Dutch Postcode Loterij, VriendenLoterij, and sister lotteries in Germany, Sweden, Norway, and the UK). The Postcode Lottery Group shares a common mission of raising funds for good causes under the Novamedia umbrella.
• KansspelautoriteitcoreOthers · 21 October 2021The Kansspelautoriteit (Dutch Gambling Authority) is the official regulator that grants and oversees the lottery license for the Postcode Loterij. The lottery operates under License 300028/14480 granted on 21 October 2021. The regulator sets rules for responsible play, advertising, and participant protection.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• VriendenLoterij: Dutch sister charitable lottery operating under the same Holding Nationale Goede Doelen Loterijen N.V. with shared participant administration, customer service (Ledenservice), and pricing model. Together they form the largest charitable lottery operator in the Netherlands.
• People's Postcode Lottery (UK): UK-based sister lottery operated by Novamedia/Postcode Lottery Group using the identical postcode-based charitable lottery model. Direct operational and strategic peer offering monthly draws with charity funding for UK and international causes.
• Svenska Postkodlotteriet: Swedish sister lottery under Novamedia/Postcode Lottery Group using the same postcode-based charitable lottery mechanic and monthly subscription tier model, supporting Swedish and international charities.
• Deutsche Postcode Lotterie: German sister lottery under Novamedia/Postcode Lottery Group operating the same postcode-based charitable subscription lottery model in Germany, including funding projects in Namibia through the German Postcode Lottery.
• Staatsloterij: Dutch state-owned monthly lottery brand operated under Nederlandse Loterij — a direct lottery competitor in the Netherlands targeting the same adult-resident ticket-buyer segment with a long-tenured brand heritage.
• Lotto (Netherlands): Weekly Dutch lottery operated by Nederlandse Loterij — a longstanding competitor in the Dutch consumer lottery market with weekly draws versus Postcode Loterij's monthly cadence; comparable prize-led subscription offering.

Broad incumbents

• Nederlandse Loterij: State-owned Dutch lottery holding company operating Staatsloterij, Lotto, TOTO and Eurojackpot. The principal Dutch competitor across multiple lottery formats with broader product breadth but weaker charitable-giving positioning than the Postcode Loterij.
• Allwyn Entertainment: International multi-country lottery operator (formerly Camelot) running large national lotteries including the UK National Lottery. Comparable as a major licensed national-lottery operator across multiple European jurisdictions.
• IGT (International Game Technology): Global provider of lottery operations, technology platforms (POS terminals, central systems, iLottery) and instant ticket services to state and private lotteries worldwide — comparable as an industry-scale lottery systems and operations incumbent.

Others

• Novamedia: Amsterdam-based holding company and sole shareholder of the Postcode Lottery Group, including the Dutch Postcode Loterij, VriendenLoterij and sister lotteries across five countries. Comparable as the umbrella organization coordinating the group's charitable mission and group-wide €1B annual giving.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/postcodeloterij
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCpE2b6KS2hOo4pv9IamysYQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/postcodeloterij
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nationale-postcode-loterij
• Instagraminstagram.com/postcodeloterij

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments2 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dutch Postcode Lottery