Ruawai residents are emptying their handbags to try to find an unclaimed $250,000 lotto ticket - but some have already had a win.

Extra profit attributed to two major prize draws which prompted optimistic punters to buy tickets in record numbers.

The way Securities Commission chief executive Jane Diplock sees it, New Zealand's investor protection was way behind the rest of the world when she arrived. Since then, she says, there has been significant progress, but we are not there yet