Mystery French Euromillions winner donates €50m to charity

The man asked to remain anonymous after giving away two thirds of jackpot

The EuroMillions winner scooped £107.9 million (Getty Images)

A winner of the Euromillions lottery is donating most of his €72 million (£59 million) jackpot to charity.

The French man asked to remain anonymous but newspapers have reported that he is in his 50s, unmarried and has no children.

According to RTL, he validated his ticket where it was bought in the Haute-Garonne region and waited several days before coming forward to collect his winnings.

He then stunned lottery organisers by stating his intention for €50 million - two-thirds of his fortune - to be donated to a dozen non-governmental organisations working with the disadvantaged.

The man is being hailed as a hero across France and his unprecedented act of generosity is reportedly the largest donation by a lottery winner in country’s history.

According to the lottery organisers, la Française des Jeux, his decision was guided by a spirit of “social solidarity” and he requested no compensation or publicity.

The mystery benefactor has no financial problems and simply wants to live a normal life and monitor the work done with his donations, RTL said.