The prosecution has announced that it had reinstated a specialized organization tasked with investigating financial and securities crimes, in line with a pledge made by justice minister Han Dong-hoon in his swearing-in address on Tuesday.

The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office said on Wednesday that its financial crime investigation unit was reorganized and expanded into the "Financial and Securities Crime Joint Investigation Team."

The team, consisting of 48 prosecutors, investigators and officials from the nation's financial watchdog and tax agency, is tasked with investigating unfair transactions such as market price manipulation, among other crimes.

The team was revived two years and four months after former justice minister Choo Mi-ae abolished it as part of a move to downsize the prosecution's direct investigation authority.

There is growing speculation that the team may reopen some high-profile financial cases involving Lime and Optimus asset management funds, as well as SillaJen, a disgraced biotech company, suspected to involve many main opposition figures.