North Korea issuing SIM cards to tourists

[inquisitor]

According to recent media reports Orascom cannot recover the returns from its North Korean operations "Koryolink" and therefore has halted all investments in the network:
http://www.telegeography.com/product...n-north-korea/

A German article also comments that conversion of these profits into any foreign currency is an issue as currency exchange is prohibited in North Korea while outside the country there is no market for the North Korean Won. Further to that Koryolink's tax exemption will end on Sunday after which the company will be subject to yet unquantified taxation. In 1H 2013 Koryolink generated $150m in revenues yieding an EBITDA of $ 116m which corresponds to a huge ROS of 78%.
Remarkably in the latest half year report Orascom has valued Koryolink with $464m plus the frozen cash balance worth $366m which has been accounted as "non-current financial assets".

[DRNewcomb]

Originally Posted by inquisitor

A German article also comments that conversion of these profits into any foreign currency is an issue as currency exchange is prohibited in North Korea while outside the country there is no market for the North Korean Won.

They could probably use their NK Won to buy counterfeit $100 bills or wholesale quantities of methamphetamine they could resell for a profit.