Case Study: Multinational Online Company achieves fast, secure tax-audit preparation with Merrill Corporation’s Merrill DataSite

Multinational online company uses Merrill DataSite to gain control of complex tax audits

A global online marketplace with a market capitalization over $40 billion and more than 50 subsidiaries faced a paper‑heavy, time‑consuming process for historical tax audits: audit staff spent two to three weeks retrieving, photocopying and shipping files, while a strict no‑email policy prevented electronic sharing. The company needed real‑time, controlled access for 100+ employees and accountants, robust search, and audit trails to manage state, federal and international tax requests more efficiently.

The company implemented Merrill DataSite as a secure, scalable online repository, initially loading documents with on‑site project support and growing to more than 200,000 pages. The solution cut preparation time from weeks to minutes, eliminated shipping and photocopying costs, provided configurable user permissions and activity tracking, and enabled fast, targeted searches—transforming a paper‑driven audit process into an efficient, auditable online workflow.