AMP could face criminal penalties for misleading the corporate regulator ASIC about its practice of charging customers for services that were never delivered.

The penalties could include fines and even jail time for those participating in at least 20 instances of misleading ASIC about charging fees to customers who were no longer receiving financial advice.  The senior counsel assisting the royal banking commission Rowena Orr is recommending that AMP be charged for breaching Section 64 of the Asic Act, which is a criminal offence.  The fine for each violation could be $1 Million.

"Through AMP's dealings with ASIC regarding the extent and nature of its fee for no service conduct, AMP adopted an attitude toward the regulator that was not forthright or honest, and demonstrated a deliberate attempt to mislead," Mr Orr said.  "The senior management and executives who contributed to the misleading of ASIC over the two-year period had knowledge of the extent and nature of the conduct and were warned by junior staff about it being a breach, but continued with a misleading narrative to ASIC," she continued.

AMP management allegedly revised a supposedly independent report about the matter at least two dozens times, the inquiry has heard.