The Chairman of the United Bank for Africa (UBA) said the deceased loved children and was a great family man.
Speaking further, Elumelu described the late 57-year-old as a transformational leader and a great African.
"Everything about him was about challenging the norm. He was always running against time. He did things at a dazzling pace.
"Herbert doesn't believe that something is impossible. He worked himself sometimes to near exhaustion but he'll just keep going.
"He had an undivided loyalty....more than what money can buy. He loved children....a lot of charitable work he did was targeted at children.
"He felt that we need to come together as Africans ... because he felt our story could be a lot stronger. He was a great supporter of good causes...always ready to help.
"He was a great family....he juggled so many balls but to him, family was a glass ball. He had incredible time for his parents.
"You couldn't meet Herbert casually, he sucked you in. Herbert was a great African. He was a transformational leader. He had time for everybody ..the level of energy that drove Herbert is really uncommon.
"You came, you saw, you conquered."