CHALLENGE

Outgrowing legacy tax infrastructure as transaction volumes scaled 

Coda is an API-first merchant of record for digital content publishers. They serve major gaming companies like Activision, Riot Games, and Electronic Arts. Like many in the mobile gaming industry, Coda operates on high transaction volumes (in the millions) with relatively low average order values (typically $25–35), which creates unique considerations for sales tax solutions.

In 2024, as Coda experienced significant growth, its Tax Director, Wei Jie Siow, noticed several key challenges with their existing provider, a legacy tax engine software company:

Poor service quality

The customer support often lacked technical tax expertise, providing generic responses that couldn't solve complex problems.

Unsustainable costs

Commercial models designed for traditional ecommerce did not align with Coda’s high-volume digital transaction business model.

Limited flexibility

Coda had to accept rigid, one-size-fits-all solutions with no room for customization.

Low visibility

Coda wanted to separate tax calculation from compliance filing for better control, but their previous vendor’s bundled approach made this difficult.

We were looking for a tax partner that understood Coda’s business and were able to offer the level of flexibility we need to scale.”

— Wei Jie Siow, Tax Director at Coda

The team needed a partner who understood digital economy businesses, could offer flexible commercial terms, and would work collaboratively to solve their specific challenges.

SOLUTION

A digital-first tax engine built for flexibility

In 2024, Coda replaced their US tax determination software with Fonoa's Tax Engine for three primary reasons: 

1. Digital-first understanding: Unlike legacy providers built for physical ecommerce, Fonoa specializes in digital economy businesses. They understand the unique challenges of high-volume, low-AOV transactions in gaming. 
2. Pricing: Fonoa offered flexible pricing that matched Coda's business economics and made scaling more sustainable.
3. A partner, not just a vendor: From initial conversations with Fonoa's founders through to implementation, the relationship felt collaborative rather than transactional.

The implementation took just four weeks of active work, exceeding Coda’s expectations for when they could start testing the API. 

Amid the implementation, Fonoa was also quick to adapt. For example, Coda only collects ZIP-5 data (not ZIP+4 or full addresses) to reduce friction in the gaming checkout experience.

When initial testing revealed accuracy challenges due to limited location data, Fonoa's team developed a custom solution for this. This ensured tax calculations remained accurate enough to avoid material variances in compliance filings.

Fonoa was quick in finding a solution and developing an additional feature specific to our use case. That flexibility is exactly what we needed."
— Wei Jie Siow

Beyond the U.S. tax engine, Coda sees Fonoa as a strong platform partner that could support additional indirect tax use cases over time. This means managing everything from a single platform rather than juggling multiple providers and API integrations.

OUTCOME

90% faster calculations, reduced costs, and a scalable foundation

Since switching to Fonoa, Coda has achieved significant operational improvements.

Tax calculation time is 90% faster than with their previous provider, improving checkout experience and reduces risk of abandoned transactions.

Plus, the flexible pricing model supported a more predictable and scalable cost structure as volumes grow.The biggest win for Coda isn’t just technical, but strategic. Fonoa's customer-first approach mirrors Coda's own philosophy, creating a partnership where both sides actively work to solve problems rather than simply delivering a product.

Fonoa focuses on solving real problems, not forcing a one-size-fits-all solution.”
— Wei Jie Siow

Beyond performance gains, the decision came down to long-term partnership. Wei Jie sees Fonoa as a platform that can scale with Coda as transaction volumes grow, offering the flexibility and collaboration needed to support the business over time.

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