18.2 million dinars liquidity boost expected as Kuwait’s bank prize draws to resume

Following the Central Bank of Kuwait’s announcement lifting the suspension on bank prize draws linked to customer accounts — a suspension imposed last March — attention has turned to when the draws will resume and how banks will handle the backlog of postponed prizes.

The decision came after the Central Bank confirmed that banks are now ready to restart prize programs in line with new regulatory controls designed to ensure the highest levels of transparency, integrity and governance.

Two key questions immediately emerged. The first concerns the actual start date for the resumption of prize draws, while the second relates to the fate of hundreds of thousands of customers whose prize draws were deferred during the suspension period.
On timing, informed sources told Al-Rai that no specific date has yet been set for the resumption of prize draws.

However, they stressed that banks are fully prepared, as stated by the Central Bank, and that officials are moving quickly to restart the programs, with expectations pointing to an imminent launch without a formally announced timetable.

Other sources noted that, as of yesterday, no bank had submitted applications to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to obtain the required licenses to conduct the draws. Nevertheless, banking sources confirmed that institutions have reinforced their internal frameworks and procedures, significantly enhancing governance standards, transparency and the integrity of prize operations.

From a regulatory perspective, sources said banks have complied with all Central Bank requirements. These include agreeing to appoint Grant Thornton as the unified external audit firm to supervise all prize draws, subjecting every draw — regardless of prize value — to external audit review, applying strengthened internal audit controls within approved work plans, and adopting a unified document covering technical and operational requirements.

Regarding postponed draws, which affect an estimated 750,000 accounts across eight banks, sources indicated there is a broad banking consensus — though not yet a final decision — to complete all deferred draws within a 30-day period.

Under this likely arrangement, each bank would allocate one day per week to conduct its postponed draws, spreading them over four installments during the month. This approach is intended to prevent scheduling clashes between banks and preserve the anticipated impact of the prize events, which have been on hold for nearly 10 months.

The return of bank prize draws is expected to produce notable economic effects. The first is the anticipated injection of around 18.2 million dinars into customer accounts within a single month, corresponding to the expected completion of all postponed draws.

Analysts say this sudden liquidity inflow is likely to stimulate consumer spending while also supporting savings, with a strong probability of increased discretionary expenditure given the unexpected nature of the funds.

Unofficial estimates place the total balance of customer accounts participating in bank prize programs at approximately 2.5 billion dinars.

The second major outcome is the expected creation of seven new millionaires in Kuwait within 30 days, along with two half-millionaires and two quarter-millionaires. This reflects the cumulative value of annual million-dinar prizes offered by banks.

Leading the prize offerings is the National Bank of Kuwait’s Al-Jawhara account, with prizes totaling 5 million dinars annually, including a 3 million dinars grand prize, a monthly 125,000 dinars prize, and weekly prizes of 20,000 dinars.

Gulf Bank’s Al-Danah account follows with prizes worth about 3.32 million dinars, featuring a 2 million dinars grand prize, a semi-annual 1 million dinars prize, quarterly prizes of 100,000 dinars, and monthly draws for 10 winners of 1,000 dinars each.

Burgan Bank’s Kenz account offers approximately 2.9 million dinars in prizes, including a 1.5 million dinars annual prize, a 500,000 dinars semi-annual prize, and monthly prizes for 20 winners of 2,000 dinars.

The Commercial Bank of Kuwait’s Najma account distributes about 2.46 million dinars, comprising a 1.5 million dinars annual prize, a 500,000 dinars semi-annual prize, a monthly 20,000 dinars prize, and a weekly 5,000 dinars prize.

Kuwait Finance House’s Hasad and Rabeh accounts rank next with combined prizes of 1.5 million dinars, featuring weekly and monthly prizes and a quarterly grand prize of 250,000 dinars, alongside Warba Bank’s Al Sunbulah account.

The National Bank of Kuwait’s Fawz account follows with total prizes of 1.24 million dinars, including weekly, monthly and 250,000 dinars grand prizes.

Kuwait International Bank’s Darwaza account offers prizes estimated at 260,000 dinars, with the largest single prize reaching 100,000 dinars.