In a lottery you could spend $10 a game, and unless you get a win it's gone forever. But what if you could have a bank savings account that acted like a lottery? You would put $10 in and get the chance to win a draw of thousands or millions of dollars and still keep the $10.

LaVerne and DeAnn Brickner won $25,000 through their credit union prize-linked savings account. Photo: CNN

Well, it has been done. Several countries have a 'bank lottery' ... a lottery that works just like the one you play each week.

Britain's Premium Bonds started in 1956 with 'Saving with a Thrill.' It works by putting the interest on bonds into a prize fund. Every one pound that savers put in - up to a maximum of about US$50,000, gives them a chance to win a monthly £1 Million jackpot tax-free, as well as a million different smaller prizes.

Britain's Daily Mail held a Premium Bonds competition, and Angela Sadler was the first winner in 2010.

In New Zealand there are several banks which pay out a prize each month.

Westpac Bank will let you into their Save & Win draw for a chance to win five prizes of $10,000, plus 500 prizes of $100 each month. All you need to do is save at least $10 a month. Every $1 of your average monthly balance gives you one entry in the draw.

Students can get a 'Save and Win' account with the Westpac Student Pac.

ASB Bank has 'PrizeSaver.' At the end of each month, they calculate the average monthly balance of each PrizeSaver customer's account, and all customers with a positive average monthly balance will be entered into that month's prize draw.

Each eligible customer receives one entry per whole dollar of their average monthly balance. There is one major prize of $20,000, 20 runner-up prizes of $1,000 and 50 2nd runner-up prizes of $200 every calendar month.

 

The ANZ Bank has 'Bonus Bonds,' where you can win up to $1 million each month. Their website states the mix of major prizes will include no less than one $1 Million prize, one $100,000 prize and one $50,000 prize.

 

In the USA, prize-linked savings programs were launched in 2009 by a group of eight Michigan credit unions. At the time of the launching, Michigan's laws allowed credit unions to hold promotional savings raffles.

Since then, six states - Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Washington - have passed laws to allow credit unions and other financial institutions to hold promotional savings raffles.

Here's how it works: When you sign up for a 12-month CD and deposit at least $25, you receive one ticket for the lottery. Every $25 you add to the account after that qualifies you for another chance to win -- up to a maximum of 10 chances per month.