• Wall Street financiers are known to love Queen, but UBS’ latest work might be the most outlandish showing of that admiration yet.
  • The Swiss bank’s automotive research team wrote a Bohemian Rhapsody-themed song about electric vehicles as a way to solicit client votes in the annual Extel awards.
  • Similar to the US’ Institutional Investor analyst rankings, the prizes are a big deal for banks’ marketing departments as well as individual analysts’ careers.

Is this the EV world?

Is this just fantasy?

That’s what analysts at Wall Street investment bank UBS want you to ponder. They’d also really appreciate your vote in the Extel awards this year.

The bank’s team of autos analysts, led by Patrick Hummel, sent the pun-filled version of Queen’s mega-hit Bohemian Rhapsody to clients Thursday, a copy of which was seen by Business Insider, as a way to ask them for votes in the annual prizes.

Seriously though, "anywhere your vote goes, matters the whole world to the team."

"Nothing really matters, nothing but the vote for your A-Team," UBS writes in the closing line of their song.

Not unlike the Institutional Investor awards for US-based banks, brokers, analysts, and more, the annual awards are an important part of how financiers can both drive business and improve their reputation. For some, inclusion in the glossy awards is even part of some teams' performance reviews.

UBS' rework of the famous song is drowned in punny lyrics that hit on every bit of automative and transport news from recent months: diesel-gate, batteries, self-driving cars, and yes, of course, CapEx.

Here are the full lyrics:

Is this the EV world?

Is this just fantasy?

Join our journey

And escape from the legacy

We open your eyes

Tear down the EVs and see

We're just some cool guys, we need your sympathy

Because Extel come, II go

We're aiming high, keep others low

Anywhere your vote goes, matters the whole world to the team

Drama, a diesel ban

Put a PEMS into the pipe

Triggered limits, now it's fried

Drama, emissions are no fun

But now we're going to have the B-E-V

Drama, ooh

Now we're on the margin slide

If diesel is not back again this time tomorrow

Capex on, capex on, as if nothing really matters

But now, our time has come

Jumping on the EV train

Feeding all your hungry brain

Get on everybody, we've got to go

Gotta leave the fools behind and face the truth

Drama, ooh

Batteries that never die

We sometimes wish we never had to charge at all

Research on, Research on, as if nothing really matters

We see a self-driving robotaxi car

Level 2, level 2? No at least 5 or 4

Lidar beams and radar, incredibly exciting theme

Is it Waymo, is it Waymo

Is it Waymo, yes or no?

We're just some cool guys, hoping for sympathy

They're just some cool guys, hoping for Extel spree

Vote the A-Team in your generosity

Rank us high, don't rank us low, please don't rank us low

We're brilliant, no, you will not rank us low

We're brilliant, no, you will not rank us low

We're brilliant, no, you will not rank us low

Never rank us low, never never never never rank us low

No no no no no no no no no

Oh mama mia, mama mia, you will not rank us slow

You surely put the top spot aside for the team

For the team

For the team

So they think they can stop us and steal our pride

We count on your help to see them ranked behind

Tear down the EV, also the battery

Just to be right, right on the top of your reads

Oh yeah, oh yeah

Nothing really matters

Anyone can see

Nothing really matters, nothing but the vote for your A-Team