Dragon's Den was inspired by the Japanese television format Money Tigers.
Money Tigers was the original Japanese programme on which the international Dragons' Den format was based. The central idea was simple: entrepreneurs presented proposals to a panel of successful investors and attempted to secure funding by offering part of their business.
The format travelled internationally because it creates a clear dramatic question in every pitch: will the investors believe the plan is valuable enough to back? Questions about valuation, margins, competition and the founder's experience turn ordinary business information into accessible television.
The British programme retained the investor-panel structure but developed its own identity through UK entrepreneurs, BBC production and a succession of British dragons. It is therefore not a direct name translation of the Japanese title. The American programme Shark Tank is another adaptation of the same broad format, rather than the source programme itself.