Cross-border economic activities are complex and linked to macro- and meso-social contexts within economic globalization. The success of transnational entrepreneurship underscores the substantial interdependence between formal inter-organizational relationships and informal interpersonal relationships, particularly concerning network structure. However, research often oversimplifies the relational complexities, neglecting the interplay between relational influence and individual agency. This study employs a micro-level analysis to address the identified research gap through a case study of the life insurance sector, which is conceptualized as a network-oriented industry. Qualitative data includes 35 in-depth interviews with Hong Kong insurance agents involved in cross-border life insurance transactions, complemented by three months of observations of their sales practices. Findings indicate that economic and relational rationality guide agents in cross-border entrepreneurship. Relationships are crucial in the early stages, especially when choosing a company to collaborate with. Agents leverage institutional and social resources and online and offline interactions to expand their cross-border insurance business. Networking through existing relationships, especially with intermediary ties, enables agents to reach a wider range of potential clients. Developing network bridges through trusted relationships and enhancing presence and familiarity via digital self-branding are essential strategies for cultivating trust. These sales strategies and practices are meticulously crafted to sustain long-term relationships while optimising economic benefits. Overall, this study deepens our understanding of the complexity of embeddedness by highlighting the importance of relational influences across different contexts.

Key words: Cross-border economic activities, social networks, entrepreneurship, trust-building, multilevel embeddedness.

This study examines the application of guanxi (关系) and xi (系) in the commercial practices of Chinese immigrant communities in Barcelona, focusing on how dynamic social networks shape economic collaboration and cross-group mediation. Drawing on Xiang Biao’s conceptualization of xi (Xiang, 2004) as fluid, functionally driven relational clusters, this ethnographic research reveals that immigrant-led business networks are structured through overlapping guanxi cong (关系丛, relational complexes), each governed by a “spokesperson” who acts as a pivotal broker. Fieldwork findings demonstrate that these spokespersons—often individuals with heightened social capital derived from kinship, regional ties, or entrepreneurial seniority—leverage their dual roles as insiders and mediators. They navigate structural holes between distinct xi systems, bridging fragmented networks while consolidating intra-cluster authority.

This study highlights how brokerage transcends mere resource allocation by analyzing spokespersons’ strategies—such as negotiating bulk purchasing agreements or resolving inter-group disputes. It sustains a “formalized informality” where trust-based guanxi coexists with market rationalization. Crucially, Chinese businessmen within the same xi reconfigure traditional xi dynamics in transnational contexts. While rooted in Chinese relational ethics, their brokerage adapts to Barcelona’s regulatory environment and local Catalan business norms. This hybridity challenges static interpretations of guanxi as culturally bounded, instead positioning xi as adaptive infrastructures that enable migrants to circumvent institutional exclusion.

Why do Chinese private businesses of all sizes incur relational costs? We revisit and further develop the affinity theme (Bian and Shuai 2020) that Chinese private businesses persistently exercise strategies of guanxi favoritism to sustain their growth goals under changing degrees of market rationality. To test hypotheses derived from this theme, we have analyzed data from the 2018 China Private Enterprise Survey (CPES) and obtained the following findings. More than 3000 private businesses were randomly sampled throughout the country. While they varied tremendously in terms of employment size (with a range of 1 person to 1.1 million), founding years (1 to 72 years), and other economic and organizational variables, all of them rendered relational costs for social activities with guests of the enterprises with a median of 100,000 Chinese yuan (equivalent to US$14,000). Ongoing data analysis is designed to explore how the relational costs satisfy the goals of private businesses for survival, expansion, and profit maximization under different stages of development.