Mike Wekerle, Vikram Vij to replace Kevin O’Leary, Bruce Croxon on Dragons’ Den

Bay Street trading legend and current Difference Capital (Difference Capital Stock Quote, Chart, News: TSX:DCF) executive Mike Wekerle will join CBC’s runaway hit Dragons’ Den this spring.

Wekerle, along with Vancouver restaurant impresario Vikram Vij, will replace the departing Kevin O’Leary and Bruce Croxon.

The Dragons’ Den concept is owned by Sony Pictures Television. Versions of it are popular in may countries around the world, such as The United Kingdom, Spain, Russia and Finland. The concept was brought to Canada by CBC producer Dianne Buckner. A french version called “Dans L’Oeil du Dragon” (In the Dragon’s Eye), began airing in Quebec in 2012. The show is now the CBC’s highest rated program, after Hockey Night in Canada.

Both Wekerle and Vij have been on the small screen recently, “Wek” appeared on reality show “Wahlburgers” after partnering with Mark Wahlberg to open a location of the eponymous burger shop in Toronto. The affable Vij has been a judge on the Food Network’s “Top Chef Canada” and “Chopped Canada”, and CBC’s “Recipe to Riches”.

If a recent feature on Wekerle in Toronto Life is any indication, “Dragons’ Den” won’t be lacking color after the departure of the divisive O’Leary. The man that publication dubbed “The Oracle of Bay Street” resembled a 1960’s British rocker in a photoshoot for the piece.

Wekerle’s Difference Capital, a publicly traded merchant bank, has raised more than $180-million and made investments into up and coming Canadian techs such as BuildDirect, VisionCritical, Vena Solutions, and BTI Systems.

Below: Mike Wekerele speaks at the Cantech Investment Conference, January 16th in Toronto.

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