We demonstrate a new and high-yielding method for removal of benzylidene acetals and para-methoxybenzyl ethers under catalytic conditions (BF3:OEt2 orFeCl3, 10 mol%) with mercaptoacetic acid as a scavenger. The reaction coproducts are converted to water-soluble molecules, which can be removed by aqueous extraction, thereby bypassing the need for chromatographic purification. The reaction was demonstrated on both multimilligram and multigram scale.