What is the initial investment if the future value is $\$ 22,900.00$ and interest is compounded quarterly at a nominal rate of $1.78 \%$ for 17 years? Round your answer to the nearest cent. Assume the interest rate does not change while the account is open.

Step 1 ：Given that the future value (FV) is $22,900.00, the annual interest rate (r) is 1.78% or 0.0178 in decimal form, the interest is compounded quarterly (n = 4), and the time (t) is 17 years.

Step 2 ：We want to find the present value (PV), which is the initial investment. The formula for future value when interest is compounded quarterly is given by: \(FV = PV * (1 + r/n)^{nt}\)

Step 3 ：We can rearrange this formula to solve for PV: \(PV = FV / (1 + r/n)^{nt}\)

Step 4 ：Substitute the given values into the formula: \(PV = 22900.0 / (1 + 0.0178/4)^{4*17}\)

Step 5 ：Solving the equation gives: \(PV = 16932.048800330434\)

Step 6 ：Rounding to the nearest cent, the initial investment is \(\boxed{16932.05}\)