Boyu Fang
I am a PhD candidate in Economic History at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M). My doctoral research examines the economic status of ethnic Chinese in Southeast Asia, focusing on trade, social networks, remittances, and entrepreneurship from a long-run historical perspective.
My work engages with themes of migration, diaspora communities, imperial and colonial governance, and the interaction between informal networks and formal institutions. I have conducted archival and field research in Europe and Asia, and have published in international peer-reviewed journals as well as edited volumes.
Before starting my PhD, I completed an MSc in International Entrepreneurship Management at the University of Limerick (2:1 Honours) and a dual BA in Italian Literature and Finance at Beijing Foreign Studies University.
Download CV (PDF)
Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Getafe Campus
Ave. Ciudades, 36, 301, 28903 Getafe, Madrid, Spain
Email:
boyu.fang@alumnos.uc3m.es
Phone: +34 634 038 541
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/in/boyu-fang-8a129b12a
Education
PhD thesis: The Economic Status of Ethnic Chinese in Southeast Asia: Trade, Social Networks, Remittances, and Entrepreneurship.
Visiting PhD researcher in Economic History, supervised by Prof. Cátia Antunes.
MSc thesis: Immigrant Entrepreneurship: A Study about Chinese Students’ Entrepreneurship Intention in Ireland.
BA thesis (Italian):
Environmental Diplomacy Between China and Italy and Its Impact.
BA thesis (Chinese):
Analysis on the Feasibility of Commercial Banks’ Participation in Risk Investment.
Research Interests
- Economic history of East and Southeast Asia
- Overseas Chinese communities, migration and diaspora
- Trade networks, remittances and entrepreneurship
- Colonial governance, empire and institutional change
- Business history and development in emerging economies
Publications
Peer-reviewed journal articles
Conference paper
Book chapter
Working Papers & Papers under Review
-
Maritime trading forces and Chinese immigrant populations in the Far East, 1500–1860.
Submitted to Rivista di Storia Economica – Italian Review of Economic History (RSE-IREH). Revise and resubmit. -
Social networks and remittance behaviours among overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia, 1915–2000.
Submitted to The Journal of International Development; major revisions. -
Red ideology or pragmatism: An analysis of overseas remittance policies in post-1949 China.
Submitted to Asian Journal of Social Science; under review. -
Understanding women’s high participation rates in biaohui financial crimes in China: Insights from judicial judgments.
Submitted to Asia Pacific Viewpoint; under review. -
Tanka women in China’s coastal ports: family, social and cultural roles, and spatial influences.
Submitted to Humanities and Social Sciences Communications; under review. -
Chain entrepreneurship and social networks among overseas Chinese:
Historical evidence from Indonesia, 1890–1940.
Working paper. Available at SSRN and via DOI. -
The impacts of transformational leadership and perceived organizational support
on employees’ behavioural intention of information systems adoption:
Evidence from Chinese construction SMEs.
Working paper. -
The impact of ESG on corporate financial performance:
Empirical evidence from China’s automotive industry.
Working paper. -
The tung oil industry in eastern Sichuan and the revolutionary struggle under the
leadership of the Chinese Communist Party during the All-out War of Resistance against Japan.
Under review (in Chinese). -
Advancing the building of a culturally strong China from a new historical starting point.
Under review (in Chinese).
Research Projects
Teaching Experience
Master’s level
Responsible for curriculum design and delivery of master’s-level modules for partner universities.
University of Reading:
International Business; Dissertation Research Methods.
University of Hull:
Business Project Management; International Relations; Emerging Markets.
Medium of instruction: English.
Undergraduate level
Courses: Italian Economy and Society; Italian Culture.
Medium of instruction: Chinese and Italian.
Course: Organizational Behaviour.
Medium of instruction: English.
High-school & pre-university level
Courses: AP Microeconomics; AP Macroeconomics; AP Business Principles;
AP Business with Personal Finance.
Medium of instruction: English.
Research Grants & Scholarships
- Asia-Pacific Economic and Business History (APEBH) Conference Scholarship, Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand, 2025 – Travel scholarship (AUD 800).
- GloCoBank Early Career/Doctoral Workshop on Cross-Border Payments in Historical Perspective Scholarship, University of Oxford, 2025 – Scholarship (GBP 500), funded by the European Research Council (ERC), Horizon 2020 (Project No. 883758).
- Doctoral International Mobility Grant, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain, 2023–2025 – Funding support for international research visits (EUR 1,500).
- Sin Wai-Kin Junior Fellowship Scheme, University of Hong Kong, 2024 – Research fellowship funding (HKD 11,800).
- Excellence Scholarship, University of Limerick, Ireland, 2016 – Merit-based scholarship (EUR 1,500).
Professional Experience & Policy Work
Affiliated independent researcher, contributing to projects on population and socio-economic history within the GEPS network.
Selected as one of the first “Hundred Doctors and Masters” talents introduced by Jiangmen Municipality (civil-service rank equivalent to Section Chief level). Responsible for overall operation of the Centre, including postdoctoral recruitment, project management, funding administration, and coordination with national and provincial authorities.
Lead drafter of the Development Plan for the Biomedicine and Healthcare Industry in Qidong Life and Health Science and Technology City, Nantong, Jiangsu Province (2018–2022). Prepared investment promotion materials and provided analytical support for municipal industrial investment attraction.
Policy reports & applied research projects
-
Policy Recommendation Report – New Energy Vehicles:
Recommendations on the Expansion of Shenzhen’s New Energy Vehicle Industry into Portuguese-speaking Countries – Provincial-level policy report, second author and effective lead writer. Endorsed with written instructions by senior leadership of the Shenzhen Municipal Party Committee. -
2020 – Project Lead, Postdoctoral Innovation Practice Programme:
National Postdoctoral Management Office – Jiangmen Postdoctoral Innovation Practice Projects – Organised expert review panels, supervised allocation of research funds, and monitored project implementation and completion. -
2018 – Talent Policy Design, Jiangmen Municipality:
Contributed to the drafting and implementation of the 40 New Talent Policy Measures of Jiangmen Municipality. -
2018 – National Talent Work Best Practice Award (Third Prize):
Case Starting from the Heart: Building a Home for Postdoctoral Researchers – Awarded by the Organisation Department of the CPC Central Committee; main drafter of the case. -
2017–2018 – Industrial Development Plan, Life & Health Sector:
Lead drafter of the Development Plan for the Biomedicine and Healthcare Industry in Qidong Life and Health Science and Technology City, Nantong, Jiangsu Province (2018–2022).
Academic Networks & Skills
Academic networks & professional affiliations
- Invited Research Fellow, Institute for Global Urban Civilization Studies, Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech), Shenzhen, China.
- Member, Chinese Society for the History of Economic Thought.
- Member, European Business History Association (EBHA).
- Member, Economic History Society (UK).
Languages
- Chinese (Mandarin) – Native; Putonghua Proficiency Test: Grade II, Class A.
- Chinese (Cantonese) – Conversational.
- English – Professional working proficiency; IELTS 7.0; TEM-8; extensive academic and professional translation experience.
- Italian – Professional working proficiency; strong speaking, reading, writing and translation skills.
- Spanish – Conversational.
- Slovenian – Basic, for everyday communication.
IT & software
- MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint); database development with Access.
- Statistical and econometric software: EViews, SPSS, Stata, R.
- ArcGIS for spatial analysis; Photoshop for basic graphic and layout work.
- Experience managing Weibo and WeChat official accounts, including content planning and audience engagement.
Academic Referees
Role: PhD primary supervisor
Email:
daciltania.juif@uc3m.es
Role: PhD co-supervisor
Email:
pablo.martinelli@uc3m.es
Role: Visiting PhD supervisor (Leiden University)
Email:
c.a.p.antunes@hum.leidenuniv.nl
Role: MSc thesis supervisor
Email:
antoinette.flynn@ul.ie