The decision is not surprising insofar as darexaban was a day late and a dollar short relative to the competition (Xarelto, Eliquis, Pradaxa), as discussed in the prologue of #msg-66651733. Astellas previously submitted an application for marketing approval in Japan (#msg-55022218), but then quietly withdrew the application.
“The efficient-market hypothesis may be the foremost piece of B.S. ever promulgated in any area of human knowledge!”