The video goes into that the Mali Kingdom and other western Sub-Saharan states had huge gold deposits that were surface mined. People were able to pick gold up off the ground or pan for it. So they were rich, but it's more comparable to the Beverly Hillbillies than Gordon Gekko.
These undeveloped societies with mud huts and no true urban cities were flush with a resource that bought them stuff
Even if he was, wasn't it just by virtue of being a trade hub and getting a cut from the trades
The video goes into that the Mali Kingdom and other western Sub-Saharan states had huge gold deposits that were surface mined. People were able to pick gold up off the ground or pan for it. So they were rich, but it's more comparable to the Beverly Hillbillies than Gordon Gekko.
These undeveloped societies with mud huts and no true urban cities were flush with a resource that bought them stuff
He was also had a number of slaves I hear