Investors say board changes are still needed at AMP and chairman Catherine Brenner's position is still "in question", despite the abrupt resignation of chief executive Craig Meller and the company's "unreserved" apology for its misconduct and failures.

The announcement on Friday of Mr Meller's immediate departure from the institution, along with a review of AMP's governance and regulatory processes, capped off a torrid week for the company following revelations at the royal commission that it repeatedly mislead the corporate regulator and that key figures, including Ms Brenner, were involved in altering an independent report from lawyers Clayton Utz on AMP's "fees for no service" scandal.

AMP shares closed lower again on Friday, with investors noting that little had actually changed at AMP given Mr Meller was already departing before the end of the year.

AMP shareholder Legg Mason said the resignation did not deal with underlying issues at the financial services giant. "The announcement of the [chief executive's] immediate resignation and additional governance reviews seem an appropriate response to the public’s reaction this week," said Matthew Davidson, senior research analyst at Legg Mason's Australian arm, Martin Currie.