You can do short term trading (as well as long term, of course) if you get an account at an exchange (bitstamp is good from what I hear, it's in the EU). I just

You can do short term trading (as well as long term, of course) if you get an account at an exchange (bitstamp is good from what I hear, it's in the EU). I just mentioned Coinbase as it is easier than getting a trading account. Local bitcoins allows for anonymous trading, as it is peer to peer. All the large exchanges have to follow anti-money laundering laws and other regulations.