More and more North Koreans are making payments using mobile phones, with cash transactions "becoming increasingly rare," the Choson Sinbo, a mouthpiece for Pyongyang in Japan, reported on Thursday.
According to the daily published by the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan or Chongryon, residents in Pyongyang are now able to use their mobile devices to pay at restaurants, stores, and on public transportation, and can also preload money to settle phone bills and other expenses.
In a similar development, an online-only bank like South Korea's Kakao Bank and K-Bank, was reportedly launched in October last year.
These new trends come after the isolated country seems no longer able to control the widespread use of smartphones, while the outside world is rapidly changing in the era of artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies.
However, some suggest that the rise of mobile payments in lieu of cash may actually help the regime tighten its control, given that online transactions are easily traceable.
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