UBS To Sponsor Formula 1 Racing From Singapore Grand Prix

UBS AG (UBS) said Monday it will sponsor Formula 1 racing from the Singapore Grand Prix later this month, part of its new branding push.

UBS said it wouldn't disclose financial details of the sponsorship, though "commercial attractiveness was...a key consideration for UBS and the agreement compares favourably with other forms of brand awareness and client hospitality," the bank said in a statement.

The Formula 1 sponsorship comes as UBS launches "we will not rest," its most extensive advertising campaign in several years, aiming to mend relations with clients, in particular at UBS's flagship private bank, which is still leaking wealthy client assets. The campaign features personalities such as Neil Armstrong, the first astronaut to walk on the moon, and Swiss-French architect and designer Le Corbusier.

"UBS is a global company where performance, teamwork and superior execution are integral to their clients' success. These values complement those of Formula 1 and I'm delighted to welcome UBS to Formula 1," Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone said in a joint statement.

Private banks such as UBS traditionally sponsor to offer perks to wealthy clients. Specifically, UBS backs the Montreux Jazz Festival, Art Basel and Weltklasse Zurich, a competition of track and field's Diamond League. Past sponsorships have included Swiss billionaire Ernesto Bertarelli's Alinghi sailing team, which won the America's Cup in 2003 and 2007.

UBS's sponsorship of Formula 1 racing comes more than a year after hometown rival Credit Suisse Group (CS), which used to sponsor Formula One team BMW Sauber, failed to renew a contract to sponsor that team.

-By Katharina Bart, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]