The Trade Bank of Korea (the DPRK's foreign exchange institution) issued this note for use exclusively by foreign visitors — not North Korean citizens, who were barred from holding foreign-exchange certificates. The 1988 series was color-coded by intended user: different tints distinguished capitalist-country visitors from socialist-bloc ones, a partition that reflected Pyongyang's carefully managed exposure to outside currency and commerce.
Survivorship is high relative to circulation, since tourists tended to keep them as souvenirs rather than spend them down.
The Trade Bank of Korea (the DPRK's foreign exchange institution) issued this note for use exclusively by foreign visitors — not North Korean citizens, who were barred from holding foreign-exchange certificates. The 1988 series was color-coded by intended user: different tints distinguished capitalist-country visitors from socialist-bloc ones, a partition that reflected Pyongyang's carefully managed exposure to outside currency and commerce.
Survivorship is high relative to circulation, since tourists tended to keep them as souvenirs rather than spend them down.