Winning a large sum of money at a casino may seem like a dream come true, but few anticipate the challenges and stress involved in bringing that money back home if the win happens overseas.
Ms Sherylynn Kok, 28, experienced this first-hand in April, after winning RM800,000 ($244,000) at a slot machine in a Genting Highlands casino.
She, her boyfriend and her parents were on a weekend getaway at the hill resort. On that fateful Friday afternoon, they began playing at the jackpot machines.
Ms Kok was initially on a losing streak.
“I kept changing slot machines and finally sat down at a random one,” recalls the owner of a frozen food supply company and social media agency.
Five minutes in, she triggered a feature game offering four jackpot tiers: mini, minor, major and grand, each with rising prize values and shrinking odds. She pressed the button.
The columns began aligning on the payline. Three of the grand prize symbols appeared on the screen, along with a small message at the bottom of the screen: She had won the grand prize of RM800,000.
Shortly after, a group of security guards, along with a few casino staff, approached Ms Kok and her boyfriend and checked the machine. After verifying that it was a legitimate win, she was asked to head to the cashier to collect her winnings.
Stacks of RM10,000 notes, separated into eight bundles of RM100,000, filled up a backpack that was “crazy heavy”, she said.
As she had never carried such a huge sum before, she requested security guards to escort her back to her hotel room.
“They said walking around the casino was fine, but the moment we exited the casino, they cannot guarantee anything won’t happen.”
That night, the group took turns to guard the backpack.
It was the weekend, so they could not remit the money back to Singapore and all the banks were closed.
The group also learnt that transfers needed to be made using a Malaysian bank account, which none of them had.
When they reached the airport to get on their return flight to Singapore, they found out that carrying such a large amount of cash out of the country required approval from Malaysia’s national bank.
Ms Kok’s parents returned to Singapore first, while she and her boyfriend figured out their next steps.
The next day, she managed to open a Malaysian bank account with OCBC, which offered dual-currency access, with the flexibility to switch between ringgit and Singapore dollar.
Ms Kok claims she is disciplined when gambling, setting a firm limit on how much she is willing to lose before she starts. “I gamble not because I want to earn money, but because once in a while, there is nothing to do, and I have no plans over the weekends.”
When told of her win, some friends advised her to invest her money or treat herself to some luxury shopping or a holiday.
“I am very risk-averse, and I don’t understand complex investment options, so keeping the money in a simple bank account seems safer,” says Ms Kok.
She has heard stories of others who came into large sums of money, only to spend it in a matter of months.
A friend of a friend won $1.4 million from Toto. The woman impulsively invested in various businesses, spent lavishly, and ultimately used up all the money in less than a year.
Ms Kok refers to herself as “low-maintenance” and is not drawn to conspicuous spending and luxury items.
To her, this windfall is a gift of time – a chance to slow down in her career and not hustle as hard. But she does not see it as a ticket to early retirement.
“I keep trying to steer myself away from the thinking that I am rich or like I have money. I don’t think $200,000 will last you a lifetime.”
Jessica Novia for The Straits Times
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