The millionaire media mogul from Hong Kong, Jimmy Lai, received a term of roughly six years in prison for fraud.
Lai was found guilty of illegally subletting office space in October, and the court claimed that Lai had no remorse.
Lai received five years and nine months term as well as a 2 million Hong Kong dollars (£209,535) fine.
The 75-year-old recently served time for taking part in a banned vigil last year for victims of China’s 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
A separate trial involving Lai on national security charges had been due to begin on 1 December but was postponed at the request of Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-Chiu. If convicted, he faces up to life imprisonment.
China has enforced its wide-ranging national security law on the city of Hong Kong, making it easier to prosecute protesters.
The law has led to the arrests of many prominent democracy activists.
Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to China’s rule in 1997.