Elucidate the following: Corporate governance rating systems.

Corporate Governance Rating Systems: With the increasing emphasis on Corporate Governance across the globe, it is perhaps not surprising that a number of Corporate Governance Rating Systems have been developed. Examples of such firms which have developed Corporate Governance Rating Systems are Deminor, Standard and Poor's, and Governance Metrics International (GMI). The rating system cover several markets, for example, Deminor has tended to concentrate on European companies whilst Standard and Poor's have used their corporate governance rating system in quite different markets, for example, Russia. GMI ratings cover a range of countries including the US, various countries in the Asia-Pacific region and Europe. These Corporate Governance Rating Systems should be of benefit to investors, both potential and those presently invested, and to the companies themselves. A Corporate Governance rating could be a powerful indicator of the extent to which a company currently is adding, or has the potential to add in the future, shareholder value. This is because a company with good Corporate Governance is generally perceived as more attractive to investors than one without. Corporate Governance Rating Systems should provide a useful indication of the CG environment in specific countries, and in individual companies within those countries. Such rating systems will provide a useful "benchmarks" for the majority of investors who identify good CG with a well-run and well-managed company. The ratings will also be useful to Governments in identifying perceived levels of Corporate Governance in their country compared to other countries in their region, or outside it, whose companies may be competing for limited foreign investment.