EBay is close to signing a deal which will see its Enterprise unit sold for around $900 million, a figure which is significantly less than the original 2011 investment.

The deal would represent a significant loss for the company, having only bought it in 2011 for $2.4 billion.

Recent reports had linked the unit with private-equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners for around $1 billion, but now the interested buyer is looking like a group led by private-equity firm Permira.

The deal could be announced as early as this week, perhaps when it is scheduled to release its second-quarter financial results.

The unit took in $1.24 billion in revenue last year, which represented a 6% increase from the previous year.

The Enterprise unit helps to power online retail sites for companies such as IKEA. It has recently suffered a blow with one of its largest customers Toys "R" Us saying that it would take its U.S. business in-house by mid-2016.

The company is aiming to streamline its business as it lags behind competitors such as Amazon. Other recent business from the company has seen it sell back its 28.4% stake in Craigslist.