Money Tigers is the Japanese business-pitch format that inspired the international Dragon's Den franchise.
The Japanese programme, known as Money Tigers, established the central format in which entrepreneurs sought investment from a panel of successful businesspeople. The British version adapted that structure and called its investors Dragons, while other countries developed their own titles and panel identities.
The format's international spread can cause confusion because Dragon's Den is not the original programme title. The American version is called Shark Tank, but that is an adaptation rather than the Japanese source programme. The core idea remains consistent across versions: a founder presents a business and negotiates investment, valuation and ownership with potential backers.