A 20-year-old Canadian lit up social media after she won the lottery in the summer of 2025 and (gasp!) chose to accept her winnings in an annuity rather than a lump sum.

Instead of taking a tax-free lump sum of $1 million (Canadian lottery wins aren’t taxed like U.S. jackpots), Brenda Aubin-Vega, of Quebec, chose to receive $1,000 a week for life. Her decision contrasts with what the vast majority of lottery winners choose and drew criticism. Everyone seemed to have an opinion, even Binance founder Changpeng Zhao.

The fierce debate highlights, once again, the age-old question of whether lottery winners should take the lump sum or an annuity and how even to make that decision.

“The reason most take the lump sum is because if you take the annuity and get hit by a bus, they feel like it’s over,” said Dan White, founder and CEO of Daniel A. White & Associates in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania.

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