1 Won Blue stamp; non-convertible (Socialist) currencies, 2nd issue

North Korea ran parallel currency systems for decades — one for citizens, one for foreigners — and this note belongs to the domestic socialist series, explicitly non-convertible and restricted from use in the hard-currency shops (Hwanggumseong and similar establishments) that operated separately for diplomats and tourists. The blue stamp series was the second domestic re-issue, following structural changes to the won's internal classification system in the 1980s.

The "non-convertible" designation was printed into the note's function, not just its policy — a deliberate architectural choice to prevent arbitrage between the parallel economies.