Nippon Television created the original Japanese television format that became the international Dragon's Den franchise.
The format began in Japan as Money Tigers, a programme in which entrepreneurs presented business proposals to successful investors. Its central mechanism was simple and adaptable: founders asked for money in exchange for a stake in their companies, while the investors questioned the proposal and negotiated terms.
Nippon Television developed the format before it was licensed for versions in other countries. The UK adaptation retained the core idea but used British investors, British entrepreneurs and the title Dragon's Den. Other territories adopted related names and local panels, showing how a focused studio format could travel internationally.
A frequent mistake is to identify the country of origin rather than the company that created the television format. Japan is the originating country; Nippon Television is the specific broadcaster and production organisation credited with developing the original concept.