Wachovia, aiming in part to blunt the effects of its first quarter loss, says it will raise $7 billion to shore up its capital position. It appears it will issue some common and some preferred convertible stock. This comes on top of a move earlier this year to raise more than $8 billion. The company has said recently that it was in fine shape, but the first-quarter loss wasn't expected, with many believing that the mortgage crisis is the main culprit. You have to wonder if executives aren't kicking themselves over their purchase of mortgage high-flier Golden West, which specialized in interest-only loans, at the height of the bubble. Commercial real estate now looms as another challenge, the New York Times notes.

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- here's the New York Times background

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