Private equity baron Joel Thickins has dominated headlines for the better part of a week after allegedly crashing his $170,000 BMW into five vehicles in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

Police allege the co-head of TPG Capital Asia struck a Mazda before ploughing into four parked cars on York Road in Paddington at about 7.20pm on Monday.

The 48-year-old was arrested and taken to Paddington Police Station, where he allegedly refused both a roadside breath test and a breath analysis. Three of the five damaged vehicles were later towed from the scene.

TPG is yet to comment publicly on its employee's recent troubles; however, the Daily Mail understands that he still has the top job for now.

It's not quite the fresh start Thickins and his wife, Celina, were hoping for when they relocated from Melbourne to Sydney in late 2024.

Before the alleged drink-driving saga, private equity sources say Celina had issued her husband an ultimatum: move to Sydney or risk losing the marriage altogether.

Prior to the move, Thickins had become immersed in the fast-paced lifestyle that so often accompanies personal wealth and corporate power. Among the businesses acquired by TPG during his tenure are Petbarn, Greencross Vets and Funlab.

A source alleges a former friend of Thickins, who cannot be named for legal reasons, played a central role in driving his high-octane lifestyle. 

The two were not a good influence on one another, to put it mildly, with the insider claiming Celina was eager to put distance between her husband and his ex-associate.

'These guys are nerds done good. They didn't party in high school, so partying later in life is all ego for them,' said the spy on the condition of anonymity.

Thickins' friend seems to have calmed down more recently, entering into a new relationship after the end of his marriage.

It should also be noted that Celina, a former interior designer, is an impressive figure in her own right: she manages the Thickins Family Office, a private wealth vehicle she runs with her husband that backs women-led businesses, as well as Scale Investors, billed as 'Australia's first women-led VC fund backing women-led start-ups'. 

Meanwhile, Thickins has some time on his hands while on leave before his scheduled appearance at Waverley Local Court on June 30.

And he hasn't spent it simply pacing the halls of his $14.5million South Coogee mansion.

The corporate heavyweight has instead been pounding the pavements of Sydney's eastern suburbs, according to his Strava account, seen by The Australian.

Last Sunday, he knocked out a 9km run, recording his second-fastest time on a popular Coogee Beach segment. Also last week, he completed a 16km, three-hour march around Malabar Headland.

As scrutiny of the private equity heavyweight intensifies, TPG and Thickins have enlisted crisis communications veteran Sue Cato of Cato Counsel.

Known in corporate circles as one of Australia's most formidable reputation managers, Cato has represented a string of high-profile clients, including Merivale.

She also has long-standing ties to the media industry through her work with the former Fairfax Media.

But the reputational damage may already be done.

Thickins' alleged crash has escaped the confines of Sydney's corporate gossip circuit and landed on one of the world's most-followed finance news accounts on Instagram, ensuring the saga is dissected far beyond Australia.

As noted in my column last week, the Colorado-born financier was described by insiders as 'cocky' - with one industry source offering a far more colourful descriptor that is best left unpublished.

When I previously asked around about Thickins, the same theme kept coming up: he's very private, has never understood why there is any interest in his personal life - and will be absolutely hating all the attention he's getting from the Paddo prang.

Long before the latest drama, Thickins had found himself in the spotlight as one of the driving forces behind a failed $2.87billion bid for the aforementioned Fairfax, which has since merged with Nine Entertainment.

The Fairfax pursuit ended in spectacular fashion, with media reports claiming Thickins had managed to get Fairfax's board 'seriously offside', leaving the publisher behind the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and the Australian Financial Review unwilling to entertain future dealings with either him or TPG.

Ironically, those who know him say he has little tolerance for media interest - whether in business or his personal life - so you can imagine he is having a hell of a month.

Ms Cato was contacted for comment.