Smartphone-based e-payment techniques look like rising shortly in Pyongyang. A number of competing fee platforms at the side of latest accounts from guests to the capital counsel the QR code-based platforms are extensively used and accepted, from shops all the way down to avenue distributors.
Details about the unfold of e-payment platforms outdoors of the capital is far more restricted, however information obtained by NK TechLab signifies there’s a push to take the networks nationwide.
The info covers lists the places the place folks can deposit cash into Samhung e-wallet accounts betwee 2022 and 2025. Samhung operates one of many largest smartphone-based fee networks within the nation and since 2022, the community has greater than tripled in dimension. Progress was initially centered on Pyongyang however now seems to be centered on the provinces.
Increasing use of digital funds, which could be accomplished in each native and foreign currency, offers the state extra perception into the home economic system, and helps it each regulate costs and acquire taxes. It will also be used as a type of surveillance, though the first incentive is seemingly the financial advantages.
Background
Digital fee companies started in North Korea round 2011 when the International Commerce Financial institution issued the Narae (나래) debit card. The Central Financial institution adopted in 2015 with the Jonsong (전성) Card, however accounts counsel each had been comparatively unpopular because of mistrust of banks.
Residents started utilizing cellphones to make micropayments within the late 2010s by exchanging mobile airtime credit in lieu of cash. This ad-hoc and unregulated fee system was closed by the state in 2019.
The Digital Cost Legislation (전자결제법) of 2021 allowed non-banking entities, comparable to IT corporations, to supply fee companies beneath supervision of the Central Financial institution and this seems to have been the set off for lots of the platforms. A minimum of seven competing platforms have been noticed: Samhung (삼흥), Manmulsang (만물상), Huinnun (흰눈), Jonsong, Narae, Saebyol (새별) and Apnal (앞날).
Video from guests to North Korea exhibits QR codes are more and more current at many factors of sale. Within the case of a avenue meals vendor or market stand, it could be a single code for a single platform, however at bigger shops a number of platforms accepted.
Deposit Community
The e-wallet techniques are backed by a community of places the place customers can deposit money into their accounts. In late 2022, there have been round 200 such places within the Samhung community, however by early 2025, the quantity had risen to over 700.
The overwhelming majority of these places are in Pyongyang. Town had 149 deposit factors in late 2022, rising to 576 in early 2025. In the remainder of the nation, the variety of places jumped from 74 to 133. Many of the enlargement in Pyongyang got here between 2022 and 2024, whereas the tempo of development outdoors of Pyongyang picked up in 2024.
Maybe extra hanging than the variety of places has been the geographic unfold. In Pyongyang, there are a number of deposit places in every district however outdoors of the town, the community is much less concentrated. For probably the most half, the community has grown to incorporate a minimum of one location in each county. Whereas one location per county won’t meet precise demand, it has meant a speedy enlargement in areas lined from 2024 to 2025 and suggests adoption of those applied sciences is, certainly, rising.
That stated, a number of the places that existed within the 2022 information don’t exist within the 2025 information. It’s unclear if that is because of the service being eliminated or incomplete information.
Notably, the 2025 dataset lists a deposit level in each county of North Hwanghae and Ryanggang province and all districts of Nampho Metropolis, along with the great protection of Pyongyang. Based mostly on the 2025 dataset, a number of provinces are lagging in adoption together with North Hamgyong, the place solely Chongjin seems to be lined.
Greater than half of the places are IT Exchanges (정보기술교류실), that are bodily places the place North Koreans can get assist with their cellphone and obtain new apps and content material.
These service facilities usually are not run by Samhung, in order that they seemingly deal with deposit companies for different e-payment apps too. This principle is supported by a poster for the Huinnun e-wallet that mentions IT service facilities as deposit places.
Solely a handful of the cost factors are banks or publish places of work, which factors to the root of Samhung and most different e-payment apps being in North Korea’s expertise sector quite than the banking sector.
Two of North Korea’s banks, the Central Financial institution and the International Commerce Financial institution, function their very own money playing cards. The playing cards, Jonsong and Narae, respectively, have companion e-payment apps however comparable information for their deposit networks is just not accessible.
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One of the vital fascinating elements of the e-payment platforms is that they permit customers to maintain extra than simply North Korean gained. The money is transformed to overseas trade (FX) gained (외화원), a digital forex that’s used to symbolize foreign currency and is value about 110 FX gained to the US greenback.
Traditionally, the US greenback has purchased roughly 8,000 North Korean gained, though this charge has considerably modified lately and is now round 63,000 gained to the greenback.
Nevertheless, the FX gained and standard North Korean gained (내화원) usually are not interchangeable and items are priced in a single or the opposite. The FX gained charge is ready by the state and seems to be much more steady.
Of the places within the 2022 dataset, all settle for home gained deposits, and the bulk additionally settle for overseas forex. In 2023, a handful of deposit factors appeared to settle for solely overseas forex. As of early 2025, this had grown to 102 places that solely settle for overseas forex deposits. All are ATMs.
Of the opposite places, 341 settle for solely North Korean gained, and the remaining 266 places settle for each overseas and home forex deposits.
The widespread capacity to deposit overseas forex illustrates the state’s effort to seize overseas forex money circulating within the economic system. When customers pay it into digital accounts, the onerous money turns into accessible to the state for its use whereas the consumer will get an digital credit score that can be utilized to buy items at a later date.
ATM Networks
ATM networks additionally look like spreading alongside the expansion of e-payment companies. Hwawon ATMs, run by Hwawon Digital Financial institution (화원전자은행), had been in 15 places in late 2024, however a more moderen pamphlet promoting the community posted on Chinese language social media signifies they’re now in a minimum of 40 places. Many are in Pyongyang however the pamphlet notes: “ATMs are being launched not solely in Pyongyang but in addition nationwide.”
Two different ATMs have additionally appeared in vacationer movies. One carries the Narae identify and one other the Taesong Financial institution (대성은행) identify. They seem to have comparable or an identical interfaces. Like most North Korean ATMs, they’ve a card slot, 2D barcode scanner, receipt printer and keypad.
The screens of all three ATMs promote the power to make use of the machines to fund digital wallets.
Conclusion
The info present additional proof that the state is pushing the event and use of digital cash platforms in North Korea, not simply in Pyongyang however throughout your entire nation. For the state, digital techniques carry some effectivity to the economic system, enable for worth monitoring and management, and supply the info wanted to gather taxes. The assist of overseas forex within the community helps the state soak up onerous money within the economic system, which may then be utilized by the state for its personal enterprise. Digital funds may also add an further layer of surveillance to the on a regular basis lives of North Koreans, though the first goal seems to be financial.
