Federal treasurer Scott Morrison has launched a stunning intervention in the Hayne royal commission by issuing a warning to AMP executives that their conduct in relation to overcharging customers and lying to the regulator about it could see them serve prison time.

The Treasurer described revelations that AMP had a policy of charging customers for services they did not provide, lying to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission about the practice and presenting ASIC with a supposedly independent report that incorporated numerous changes from the chairman and the executive team as "deeply disturbing".