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North Korean House of Cards

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• 2.16 Fund, also mentioned in Kim Jong-il’s will, refers to both the<br />

Party and secret funds. The Party funds are generated from Party<br />

membership dues. According to the last public figures, the membership<br />

<strong>of</strong> the KWP was approximately 3 million. A portion <strong>of</strong> the annual dues<br />

goes to the 2.16 Fund managed by Ri Cheol-ho, a member <strong>of</strong> Kim<br />

Jong-un’s Personal Secretariat.<br />

• Party organization and administrative unit taxes also contribute to<br />

funds. Each Party and state body pays a three to five percent tax to<br />

the 2.16 Fund. This reportedly accounts for approximately $100-200<br />

million per year.<br />

• Revenue, interest, and earnings generated from illegal transactions<br />

on the funds managed by General Bureau 73 and Office 38 result in<br />

approximately $200-300 million per year for the 2.16 Fund.<br />

• Foreign investments generate approximately $200-400 million per year<br />

for the 2.16 Fund.<br />

• Bank transactions, including those from the Foreign Trade Bank,<br />

generate approximately $100-200 million per year for the 2.16 Fund.<br />

• Mandatory embassy tributes account for approximately $50-100<br />

million per year for the 2.16 Fund.<br />

• Second Economic Committee and associated defense industry funds<br />

transferred to the 2.16 Fund total approximately $100-200 million<br />

per year.<br />

Each <strong>of</strong> the components <strong>of</strong> the regime involved in the generation <strong>of</strong> hard<br />

currency is responsible for meeting a mandated target <strong>of</strong> revenue to be turned<br />

over to the <strong>of</strong>fices <strong>of</strong> the Supreme Leader through General Bureau 73. 463 These are<br />

considered loyalty funds. Most <strong>of</strong> this money comes from the operations <strong>of</strong> front<br />

companies tied to these regime organizations. Failure to meet the mandated targets<br />

can result in institutional and individual punishments.<br />

• The KWP FAD has a target <strong>of</strong> $20 million per year.<br />

• Office 39 has a target <strong>of</strong> $20 million per year.<br />

463 Author’s discussion in 2014 with sources in Seoul with knowledge <strong>of</strong> <strong>North</strong> <strong>Korean</strong> hard<br />

currency operations. Under Kim Jong-il, his style <strong>of</strong> leadership fomented competition among leadership<br />

units, which played out in hard currency operations. Because the pressure was fierce to show loyalty<br />

through funds given over to Kim, there was little coordination and delineation between units. This inevitably<br />

led to turf wars, which continued to grow under Kim Jong-un.<br />

Ken E. Gause<br />

211

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